MANILA, Philippines — Century Pacific Food Inc., the listed Po family-led food and beverage company, is taking a bigger bite of the United States market.
It is bringing its plant-based brand unMEAT to Walmart, one of the largest retailing companies in the United States.
CNPF chief operating officer Greg Banzon said unMEAT’s presence in Walmart is a vote of confidence for the company and a testament to the rosy prospects of plant-based products globally.
“The vote of confidence from Walmart affirms that we are heading in the right direction with respect to our plant-based business,” he said.
“We believe in the long-term potential of plant-based alternatives, and brands like unMEAT have a role to play to sustainably address the food requirements of an increasingly growing global population,” Banzon also said.
The brand’s Meat-Free Luncheon Meat-Style’ product is now available in more than 2,000 Walmart stores across the US.
Aside from Walmart, unMEAT is distributed in the US through select outlets and grocery stores.
It is also available in specialty e-commerce sites such as GTFO, It’s Vegan, Weee! and Vegan Black Market.
Starting with a refrigerated line in 2020, CNPF has expanded its ‘unMEAT’ portfolio to include new plant-based food formats.
The company rolled out a shelf-stable ‘unMEAT’ luncheon meat line and a plant-based dairy alternative ‘unCHEESE’ in 2021, while it launched a domestic breakfast range and a seafood alternative ‘unMEAT Fish-free Tuna’ last year.
Moving forward, Banzon said CNPF would develop and test more unMEAT products to expand the range and to provide consumers with more plant-based options.
“As we work on increasing our reach in key international markets to further grow the brand, we are also looking to develop products that would cater to local tastes” Banzon said.
unMEAT products have been favorably received both locally and abroad.
A recent survey conducted in the US by a third party market research firm showed that seven out of 10 respondents claimed that unMEAT Fish-free Tuna is superior to other plant-based tuna brands in terms of taste and texture.
In the local market, the brand was rolled out through Shakey’s Pizza, followed by a retail launch across major supermarkets nationwide.
The company began the global rollout of unMEAT in 2021.
At present, unMEAT is available in the UAE, United States, China, Australia and Singapore.