Sainsbury's is to stock a range of 'fake meats' next to real meat in a store trial looking to capitalise on the UK's 'flexitarian' and vegan market.
The retailer has announced its new range of fake meats, which includes burgers which 'bleed' when cut open, to go on sale next month.
The trial by Sainsbury’s – in 400 of its larger stores – is a first for the UK, where vegan products are traditionally stocked in its own unique section.
The fake meats, which includes burgers and mince which imitate meat, are made by the Danish manufacturer Naturli’ Foods.
“Our goal is to contribute to restore the balance between nature and man,” Henrik Lund, the chief executive officer of Naturli’ Foods, told the Guardian.
“We’ve developed this product assuming that many people want to eat plants instead of animals, but are afraid of compromising on flavour and maybe even missing out on their favourite dishes such as lasagne or burger patties.”
Waitrose has also recently announced it will add dedicated vegan aisles to its 125 stores.
The move by UK retailers looking to capitalise the vegan market follows news of France banning vegan and vegetarian products from using terms enjoyed by their meat counterparts, such as 'sausage' and 'steak'.
The new law has been brought into force in France and will be enforced with a €300,000 fine.
Last year, the EU's Court of Justice ruled that plant based products cannot use the word 'milk'.
The court said that plant based products cannot, in principle, be marketed with designations such as ‘milk’, ‘cream’, ‘butter’, ‘cheese’ or ‘yoghurt’, which are reserved by EU law for animal products.
