Sales of Plant-Based Alternatives to Hospitality and Catering Doubled
In the past two years, Dutch wholesalers have supplied twice as many meat substitutes to hospitality and catering businesses.
Total sales increased from 1.36 million to 2.87 million kilograms per year between 2021 and 2023. Sales of dairy alternatives also grew significantly, according to an analysis by ProVeg Netherlands based on figures from Foodstep.
Plant-based cooking cream is particularly popular, with as much as 21 percent of all cooking cream used in corporate catering coming from plant-based sources. Martine van Haperen, foodservice expert at ProVeg Netherlands, explains: “Products like the bitterbal (a Dutch meat-based snack), cream, or mayonnaise have a high one-to-one replaceability with their animal-based counterparts.
As the quality of plant-based alternatives continues to improve, consumers often can’t taste the difference, making hospitality and caterers more willing to choose a fully plant-based option. The new sustainability goals, such as a 60/40 ratio between plant-based and animal protein by 2030, also explain this growth.”
Coffee shops and sandwich bars are also using significantly more plant-based dairy. This is mainly due to plant-based barista milk, with over 68 percent of all frothing milk in fast service now being plant-based. ProVeg estimates that one in five coffee drinks in these sectors is made with plant-based milk, with more than half of those using oat milk.
Animal dairy products have declined in popularity. Across the entire hospitality and catering sector, sales of animal dairy now amount to only three-quarters of the total from four years ago. Van Haperen notes: “During the COVID-19 lockdown, many restaurants closed their doors. As a result, many product categories experienced a temporary dip.
The demand for plant-based dairy grew significantly in the period immediately afterward. The animal dairy category never fully recovered from this. The strong rise and improved quality of equivalent plant-based alternatives could also be a contributing factor.”
About the Figures
The figures come from market research agency Foodstep and were analyzed by ProVeg Netherlands. They represent total sales figures over the period from 2017 to 2023 across all Dutch wholesalers, where foodservice companies typically purchase their products.
These purchasing figures provide a general overview of the Dutch foodservice sector as a whole. Direct purchases outside the wholesale channel are not included in the figures. The foodservice sector includes all points of sale where food is offered for immediate consumption and is divided into hospitality, catering, and fast service.
