Title: Heura’s Innovative Plant-Based “York Ham” Disrupts Meat Market
Introduction:
Since its inception in 2017, Barcelona-based Heura has been a trailblazer in the plant-based protein industry. The company is now set to launch a groundbreaking product in Spain and France – a plant-based “York Ham” – which promises to astound even the most committed meat eaters. Unlike traditional ham, Heura’s vegan alternative poses no known carcinogenic risks. Additionally, the company claims that its innovative product boasts a superior nutritional profile, offering a protein density of 65% without any additives apart from a small amount of salt.
A Clean Label Approach:
Heura distinguishes itself from other vegan meat brands by adopting a “clean label” approach. This means that their manufacturing process eschews ultra-processing, chemical additives, and other techniques commonly seen in the vegan meat industry. Instead, Heura opts for a combination of heating, cooling, mixing, and cutting (at specific pH ranges) to transform a few select ingredients into a dough that closely mimics the texture and flavor of real ham. Natural flavors are then added to replicate the taste. In contrast to the typical high processing associated with vegan meat alternatives, Heura’s technique is focused on precise control over physical processes, making it a form of “high science.”
The Science Behind Heura’s Plant-Based “York Ham”:
Heura’s chief R&D scientist, Isa Fernández, has developed a patent-pending “thermomechanical” technique to produce their plant-based ham. Rather than relying on high technology, this process utilizes mathematical modeling to microstructurally design plant proteins, achieving textures and mouthfeels that closely resemble meat. By delving deep into the molecular structure of the ingredients, Heura’s team has created algorithms that yield the desired results. The process involves mixing the ingredients with water and then subjecting them to precise heating and cooling, resulting in a finely-designed product.
The Environmental Advantages of Plant-Based Meats:
Heura’s plant-based “York Ham” offers clear advantages for the environment compared to animal meat products. The land usage required to produce soy, olives, and vegetables for Heura’s ham is significantly less than that needed for raising livestock. Furthermore, no animal welfare concerns arise when proteins are sourced from plants. However, the current retail price of Heura’s product remains higher than traditional meat-based counterparts. This price differential has limited consumer adoption, particularly during times of economic strain. While the quality and taste of vegan alternatives have vastly improved, reducing production costs is crucial for achieving broader market penetration and price parity with animal meat products.
Product Diversification:
Heura aims to expand its product range beyond the “York Ham” to include other deli meats and plant-based alternatives such as breaded products, vegan cheeses, and protein-rich pasta. By applying its innovative “thermomechanical” technique to soy-based proteins, the company seeks to capture a significant portion of the €78 billion European market for processed meats. Furthermore, Heura plans to explore opportunities in the vegan cheese segment, leveraging its scientific expertise to create desirable alternatives.
Conclusion:
Heura’s plant-based “York Ham” represents a significant breakthrough in the plant-based protein industry. Through their innovative “thermomechanical” technique and clean label approach, Heura provides consumers with high-quality, environmentally-friendly alternatives to traditional meat products. While price parity with animal meat remains a challenge, Heura’s dedication to scientific research and development positions them as a pioneering force in the plant-based protein space. As the demand for sustainable and healthier food options continues to rise, Heura is well-positioned to capitalize on the growing market for plant-based alternatives.
Summary:
Barcelona-based startup Heura is disrupting the plant-based protein space with its innovative “York Ham” – a vegan alternative to traditional ham. Made from 100% vegetables and resembling real ham in taste and texture, Heura’s product offers a superior nutritional profile and does not pose any known carcinogenic risks. Unlike other vegan meat brands, Heura takes a clean label approach, avoiding ultra-processing and chemical additives. Using a unique “thermomechanical” technique, Heura’s scientists have created a molecular structure that closely mimics meat. However, the price premium of plant-based products remains a barrier, and Heura is focused on reducing costs and expanding its product line to attract a wider consumer base.
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Based in Barcelona Heura, a disruptor in the plant-based protein space since 2017, has a product hitting shelves in Spain and France soon that it believes will leave the most committed meat eaters in disbelief. These new 100% vegetables”York Ham The “style” slices are not real ham. They just look (and we’re told they taste) a lot like meat.
But, unlike real ham, it is not known carcinogenic risk to consume these vegan sausages. The startup also claims that the nutritional profile of the product is superior to that of meat (with a protein density of 65%), without promoting additives, beyond a little salt if it is considered an additive, which, they say, It is a novelty in the category.
Heura is labeling the product with a “clean label” that they say reflects a manufacturing process that does not involve ultra-processing, chemical additives or other techniques seen in other vegan meat categories (e.g. wet extrusion).
They say they are essentially using a combination of heating, cooling, mixing and cutting (at specific pH ranges) to transform the handful of (familiar) ingredients used in faux ham into a dough that resembles the texture and “feel” of the meat. . The taste continues by adding “natural” flavors.
According to Heura, “York ham style” slices consist of about 10 ingredients. They are made from water, soy protein isolate, extra virgin olive oil, natural flavors, salt and vegetable concentrates (radish, carrot and paprika), lemon concentrate, iron and vitamin B12. (The package carries a nutritional rating of ‘B’ for a possible AE”Nutritional score” range.)
The startup says it is using a novel “thermomechanical” technique (patent pending) to produce the fake ham, which it introduced earlier this year at an event in London and which it says eliminates the need for food additives, E numbers, and “any other chemically modified ingredient in foods of plant origin.”
Accusations that alternative proteins add to ultra-processed ‘franken foods’ have been a common attack from the meat lobby, which likes to claim its products are “natural” by comparison, a tactic it completely ignores. the (known) health risks associated with the consumption of red meat products. (like ham), not to mention the level of processing that usually involves (which can include a number of additives and other unpleasant additions, such as growth hormones and antibiotics that are given to animals, which then end up in the chain human food).
Heura’s chief R&D scientist, Isa Fernández, describes what has been cooked with the patent-pending technique she is using to produce York-style ham as “high science” rather than high technology, so not here There is ultra-processing, as she says. Instead, she says the team is using mathematical modeling to microstructurally design plant proteins to achieve textures and mouthfeels that can mimic meat, without the health and environmental drawbacks.
“This new scientific knowledge and this new processing (the algorithms and these mathematical models) were a key part of structuring all these variables. Because, in the end, what we’re doing is going really deep into the molecular structure of the ingredients, all the possible inputs to the process, and creating algorithms that create these new results that allow us to get to the results that we want. have,” he told TechCrunch.
“In terms of processes… it is just these physical processes that we mention: Heating, heating and cooling, there is nothing else. With water. That’s it,” he added. “In the end, what we do with the ingredients, as we said, is simply mix them with water, heat them and cool them, but in a very, very controlled way. It is enormously designed down to the smallest detail.”
Naturally, this 100% plant-based product is much better for the environment than meat products, since the land use required to produce soy, olives, vegetables, etc. used in Heura fake ham is much less than that needed to produce the Pigs whose proteins are found in meat-based pork products.
There are also no animal welfare problems when the proteins in foods come from plants.
However, there is still a price premium. So while a package of Heura’s faux ham is priced similarly to what you might find on a package of traditional pork-based ham (at least the higher-priced sausages), you’re getting substantially less food for your money. .
Image credits: Heura
In Spain, where the Heura alternative york ham It will arrive this week on supermarket shelves (located in the sausage section), the price per package is €2.99. However, that’s for just 78g (four slices) of product. While a 200g package of pork ham can be bought in the same market for about €2. Which means there is still a considerable affordability gap when it comes to volume of comparable products.
Vegan meat products have certainly made great strides in quality in recent years (and Heura’s York-style ham appears to be another big step forward), but they haven’t been able to deliver on the promise of price parity with the meat products they have. good at imitating
These higher costs have limited consumers’ appetite to shell out for what are undoubtedly more environmentally friendly alternatives, especially during the cost of living crisis, with high food inflation and reduced food budgets. That is why we have seen some contraction affecting startups in the category during the last year, since sales growth has not given the expected results.
A family of four won’t get much lunch out of a single packet of Heura’s York-style ham. They would have to buy at least a couple of packs to make sure there was enough for everyone, at which point the price starts to look less palatable. So while fake ham itself appears, at least in this vegetarian’s eyes, similar to real animal meat, there’s still a way to go to reduce production costs so that high-quality vegan cuts can sell themselves. for the price.
However, product diversification appears to be a more immediate focus for Herua, which is touting the arrival of more sausages to its product line.
He says the same “thermomechanical” technique can be applied to produce other types of deli meats from its soy-based protein. The technique could be used to produce breaded products, vegan cheeses, and pasta (presumably a form of high-protein pasta, since traditional pasta is already vegan). Therefore, he is setting his sights on spreading more of his plant-based products onto the tables of those who can afford to eat them.
“Deli meats are a great opportunity,” says Marc Coloma, CEO and co-founder of Heura. “In Europe, it is the processed meat that people consume the most and represents a category worth 78 billion euros. So we have a great opportunity there. And we’re also cooking up big things to take advantage of cheesy opportunities.”
This report has been updated with a correction: the quote in the last paragraph was initially attributed to co-founder Bernat Anaños; In fact, the line was spoken by Marc Coloma, CEO and co-founder, who was also on the call. We regret the error.
Heura adds ‘York ham style slices’ to its 100%-plant-based vegan mix
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