What’s behind the sudden explosion of vegan spam?

Century Pacific, the largest branded food company in the Philippines, launched vegan spam via its no MEAT brand, becoming the third company in a month to launch a plant-based canned pork. What’s going on with this apparent explosion of vegan spam?

Plant-based meat brand unMeat announced two varieties of plant-based meatloaf this week – Lunch style meat and Burger Style Cold Meat — for the American market. Products are available through online retailers, GTFO It’s Vegan! and Weee!, as well as select Midwest and East Coast stores.

Brought to retailers by Century Pacific Food, the launch is the latest in a series of rollouts led by several food and retail giants across Asia-Pacific aimed at the US market. Here we look at them all in chronological order.

OmniFoods leads the way

In 2020, Hong Kong-based OmniFoods became the first company to introduce a plant-based version of the iconic product.

In a 2020 interview with vegconomist, OmniFoods founder David Yeung predicted that the company’s plant-based anti-spam product will hit “meat where it hurts the most”. Shortly after launch, OmniPork Luncheon became a huge hit and is now available at McDonalds China and Pokeworks, as well as many outlets in Asia-Pacific, the United States, and even Europe.

Shinsegae / Better Food Inc.

South Korean retail giant Shinsegae recently announced the launch of a spam-like vegan product under its new subsidiary Better Food Inc.

The soy-based alternative to canned ham was first launched at The Better company’s deli restaurant in South Korea, with plans to start operations in the United States soon and plans to expand. global expansion.

OTS Holdings / AGAIN

Last week, Singapore’s largest maker of chilled, frozen, dried and canned meat products, OTS Holdings, contributed to the global phenomenon of vegan spam by revealing plans to enter the global market with its plant-based brand ANEW.

The brand debuts a variety of plant-based SPAM-style canned meat substitutes, planning to export the products to more than 40 countries.

Five reasons for the explosion of vegan spam

High sales volume and new markets
With spam-style canned ham being the most consumed meat in the world and with manufacturers around the world realizing that meat production is not future proof, vegan alternatives to canned ham may not not only offer a high potential for a large volume of sales, but also the opportunity to open new markets with a familiar product and an heirloom taste.

Health Benefits of Vegan Spam
Originally made from pork, salt, water, potato starch, sugar and sodium nitrate, traditional spam is high in unhealthy fats, salt and low in protein, vitamins or other essentials. On top of that, spam is highly processed, with preservatives like sodium nitrate causing a number of negative health issues. However, spam’s plant-based alternatives have the power to turn the classic canned meat into a healthier option, as non-GMO plant-based alternatives contain approximately 30% fewer calories and 60% less sodium and zero sodium nitrites than his predecessor.

Spam was never just canned ham
Spam-style canned ham is one of the most iconic dishes in Asian and American cuisine. Often referred to as patriotic food, spam is loaded with emotional value and childhood memories for many consumers in target markets. With many consumers currently shifting to plant-based options, a vegan alternative to meat with sentimental value will help ease the transition and create huge market potential along the way.

Expansion has never been so easy
As a canned meat product, Spam alternatives are stable and do not require refrigeration, making them an attractive product for global expansion. OTS Holdings commented on this advantage saying that “there are lower barriers to exporting, such as low to zero tariffs. We see that the product will give us a competitive advantage over other plant players. »

Ready meals are all the rage in our fast-paced society
A great advantage of canned meat is that it keeps for a long time, is easy and quick to prepare and can be used for almost all types of dishes. These characteristics speak in favor of any spammy product, as it is perfectly suited to the needs of busy consumers around the world.

“The US market is changing significantly overnight. And our plant-based breakfast-style meat is quickly gaining popularity as we’ve added it to our product line that includes burgers, nuggets, sausages, ground meat and our newest product, fishless tuna. says Gregory Banzon, Chief Operating Officer. , Century Pacific Group, parent company of unMEAT.

“Canned meat is a popular snack in homes around the world, whether you’re an American family enjoying classic canned cooked pork or an Asian household creating musubi with pressed meat. We’re excited to bring a plant-based option to the USA for those who enjoy these classic, flavorful snacks, but are looking for a healthier and, in turn, happier option.