Just Egg is coming to South Africa.
San Franciscan company Eat Just, best known for its award-winning vegan egg products, and Johannesburg’s Infinite Foods, the premier plant-based platform in South Africa, are partnering for the launch.
Just Egg Folded (the toaster-friendly version of Eat Just’s mung bean-based egg) will be available from all Wellness Warehouse retailers nationwide. Meanwhile, restaurants such as Lexi’s, Jackson’s, and Great Cape Deli will also serve the egg.
Furthermore, customers can purchase it via Infinite Foods’ eCommerce site. According to the partnered brands, Just Egg Folded is the first-ever plant-based egg product to launch on the African continent.
“Eat Just is an innovative company on the forefront of food technology, making them an amazing partner to help Infinite Foods address the food security, health, and sustainability issues we face in Africa,” says Michelle Adelman, Founder and CEO of Infinite Foods.
“We are excited about the opportunities this partnership creates as it speaks to Infinite Foods’ ethos to create socio-economic sustainability, advance a plant-forward lifestyle, and leverage technology to bring great products to market,” she adds.
Vegan South Africa and Just Egg
A growing number of South Africa’s restaurants and eateries cater to a vegan diet, and in November 2020 (during a strict coronavirus lockdown) food delivery app UberEats reported a staggering 71 percent increase in “healthy” plant-based and vegetarian orders.
According to Eat Just, its various vegan egg products—liquid, sous vide bites, and folded—have comparable protein, calories, and fat to traditional eggs, but without the cholesterol. They are also significantly more sustainable, using 98 percent less water, 86 percent less land, and producing 93 percent less carbon than animal-based eggs.
“The biggest individual impact you can make for the planet is the food you choose to eat, and the JUST Egg Folded product allows consumers to do just that,” says Adelman. “Incorporating delicious, nutritious, and sustainable food options into our diets at every meal is more critical than ever.”
Infinite Foods reports that egg consumption is growing in Africa, with the average South African consuming approximately 7kg every year. Reducing cholesterol in the national diet could help mitigate the rate of heart disease, which is responsible for 37 percent of all non-communicable disease deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Eat Just’s folded egg contains 7 grams of protein, and 24-packs are available from Infinite Foods for R479.00 per box (approximately R120 per egg, compared to around R1.3 per chicken egg). The company—and its plant-based competitors—ultimately aim for price parity with animal products. Eat Just is also working on cell-based protein production, and hopes for a $3 billion IPO by the end of 2021.
