Heura Saw a 260% Increase In International Vegan Meat Sales in 2022

Spanish-based plant-based food tech startup, Heura, says it increased its international sales by more than 260 percent in 2022, defying category dynamics.

Despite the global economy and the stagnant U.S. plant-based market, Heura says it increased its turnover by 80 percent in 2022 with a focus on technology and sustainability as it helps to lead the European plant-based movement.

Dominating Spain’s plant-based meat category

Heura says its efficient and scalable model has led it to dominate Spain’s plant-based category growth, owning 80 percent of the increase.

It’s also seeing rapid expansion across Europe; in 2020, only six percent of its sales occurred outside Spain; by 2021 it hit 12 percent, and 23 percent in 2022.

The U.K. saw a sixfold increase in availability last year with one of the region’s leading supermarket chains, Waitrose stocking the products. France’s increased interest in plant-based options at major retailers Super U and Casino Géant contributed to 30 percent of the overall plant-based category growth in France. Heura says it also increased sales in Italy by 240 percent and expanded in the DACH region, with major retailers Billa (Austria) and Migros (Switzerland) stocking its products.

Heura says it has become the brand with the highest level of repeat buys in the plant-based category at more than 50 percent. The company dominates the top-ten plant-based SKUs in Spain at 60 percent. It says new product innovations contributed to 37 percent of sales last year. H

Food service partnerships including Domino’s Pizza in Spain, Dishoom in the U.K., and Poke House in Italy have helped to open up new revenue streams and product development. Heura also partnered with companies including Irco Restauración Colectiva, Iberoject, and Tutti Food Group to increase plant-based options in schools and airlines.

Advancing plant-based food tech

Heura also launched Good Rebel Tech (G.R.T.) — a new approach to food technology that provides a competitive advantage and solves some of the biggest category challenges including nutrition density and taste. Heura says G.R.T. delivers on taste and texture — something it says is evident in its more than 50 percent repeat rate and that its customer base is 90 percent flexitarians.

“The last year was a pivotal one for Heura,” Heura co-founder and CEO Marc Coloma said in a statement. “Each step forward for Heura in 2023 is designed to lead a net-positive food system by 2028. We are working to democratize delicious nutrient-dense foods that have a positive climate impact for people across Europe. Our experienced R&D team and world-leading academic and expert partners are creating proprietary technologies that will change the face of the plant-based food industry and unlock the true potential of the movement.”

The banner year for Heura also comes as it joined the UN Global Compact effort, working to develop more sustainable technologies for a net-positive food system. Heura will conduct comparative LCAs for all of its products later this year.