Drakes Supermarkets says demand for plant-based food alternatives growing soaring

Growing demand for plant-based mince and burgers ‘is not a fad but a lifestyle trend’ says Drakes Supermarkets.

Drakes Supermarkets employee James McDowell with the v2food mince and burger packs. Picture: Supplied.

DRAKES Supermarkets is staying on “trend”, boosting its stocks of vegan or plant-based alternative products due to growing demand.

The nation’s largest family-owned supermarket chain with a footprint of more than 60 stores in South Australia and Queensland, Drakes said vegan and plant-based items made up one of its fastest-growing categories.

“We have had a lot of request for vegan and plant-based products in the last two years,” said Tim Cartwright, general manager of fresh food at Drakes.

“We believe this is not a fad but a lifestyle trend that will continue well into the future.

“Over the last 12 months, our vegan and plant-based range has grown by over 20 per cent in the number of new products and our volume has more than doubled.

“The grocery industry is being forced to change in response to a rising demand for sustainable and plant-based product.”

The retail group, which has an annual turnover in excess of $1bn and about 5500 staff, split from wholesaler Metcash in SA, part of the Foodland group, in 2019.

The local stores are supplied through its $125m automated distribution centre.

Mr Cartwright said popular plant items included mince, burgers and sausages and also yoghurt and ice-cream, which were experiencing major growth. Overall, there was a consumer-driven push towards fresher and healthier alternatives.

”More and more of our customers are gravitating toward individualised products, which cater to specific health ailments,” he said.

“Our customers are becoming much more aware of their own personal health and what’s specifically good for them.

“For example, A2 milk is experiencing strong growth over conventional milk as people with digestive sensitivities are willing to pay a little bit extra for A2 milk.”

Mr Cartwright said health food aisles were busy with consumers finding “serious substitutes” for traditional snacks such as chips and muesli bars.

“Our suppliers are really dialling up their brands’ health appeal and freshness in order to cater to these more health-conscious customers,” he said.

“Sales in kombucha and wellness shots grew by more than 180 per cent over the past year alone.

Last week, Drakes extended its offering of Berlin group Veganz’s plant-based premium pizzas to its Queensland stores, following an SA debut.

In 2020, it made room in the meat aisles across the two states for plant products by v2food, set up in 2019 as a joint venture between Hungry Jack’s founder Jack Cowin and the CSIRO.

v2food recently raised $72m to launch its products across Europe and China.

With a valuation of more than $500m and Astanor Ventures, Huaxing Growth Capital Fund, Main Sequence and ABC World Asia among its backers, v2food is now the most funded alternative protein company in Australia.

Originally published as Drakes Supermarkets says demand for plant-based food alternatives growing soaring