Butcher takes the death out of dining
As more people turn to meat-free diets, business opportunities abound
As far as food news goes, it's hard to digest: a butcher loved by animal activists? Believe it -- sort of.
De Vegetarische Slager, translated from Dutch to The Vegetarian Butcher, is a dedicated meat shop without the meat. That is, the recently opened Netherlands store deals in plant-based animal substitutes -- think poseur pork and veggie fillets -- designed to take the death out of dining.
From a business perspective, however, the idea is anything but bloodless.
Eating Well magazine cites meatless meals as a key trend for 2011, as health-conscious consumers cut saturated fat, while innovation firm Springwise names the vegetarian butcher concept among this year's most promising commerce opportunities.
Whether humane or heretical, this is "mystery meat" writ large.
"Within the last three to five years, there's been a real explosion in terms of variety, availability and also quality," says David Alexander, executive director of the Toronto Vegetarian Association. "We're at the point now where you can go to just about any grocery store and find vegetarian chicken-fingers or meatless sausages and burgers."
Mintel reports that the desire to eat healthier, combined with greater national focus on heart health (meat substitutes typically contain no cholesterol), can be largely credited for the increasing popularity of soy-based foods and beverages -- which, as of 2008, boasted a consumer penetration of 28 per cent. A report by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada further suggests as much as 40 per cent of the population actively seeks out meatless alternatives, at least occasionally.
"As more and more people around the world opt for meat-free diets, there will be a wealth of opportunities to cater to their needs," says Chris Turner, managing director at www.springwise.com."Innovative concepts such as De Vegetarische Slager are always likely to find success, particularly if they can offer real quality in produce and presentation."
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How Cool is this!! Worth a trip to the Netherlands just to go shop there. Hopefully vegetarian butchers will creep up into North America soon:)
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