UK supermarket chain ‘Iceland’ is set to launch a new vegan product, the Sun reports. The supermarket will soon be stocking patties made from vegan meat, which are said to look and taste just like the real thing. This is Iceland’s first own-brand vegan product.
Iceland’s executive chef Neil Nugent told the Sun that the new vegan patty was created to cater for the growing popularity of flexitarianism- whereby diners cut back on meat products, spending some days entirely vegetarian or vegan.
The Sun noted that, in the UK, “there are as many as 22 million flexitarians”. Meanwhile, the popularity of veganism also continues to grow, with numbers jumping up by 600% in some countries.
Nugent told the Sun: “This is our first foray into our own-brand vegan. It’s been a real challenge to get the succulence right”.
The burger, aptly named the No Bull Burger, is made from soya protein. Beetroot and paprika give the patty its meaty look, even appearing to ‘bleed’ like traditional meat burgers.
A writer for the Sun trialled the item “to see how it matched up to the real thing”. The product comes frozen, and “looks remarkably like a frozen beef burger”, according to the publication. When cooked in a pan, the patty “sizzles satisfyingly” and after a few minutes, “took on a nice brown colour”.
The Sun commented: “The texture was chewy, like a real meat patty. And the flavour was fascinatingly beefy – a very savoury taste.”
“If you closed your eyes you might almost think it was the real thing.”
While many people enjoy the taste of meat products, an increasing number of consumers are becoming more concerned about the impact of animal products on their health and the environment. This shift in consumer awareness and shopping habits has inspired other stores, including Tesco, Waitrose and ASDA, to expand their vegan ranges.
The burger patties are set to retail at £2 for a pack of two, and will hit store shelves at the beginning of April.
Image Credit: The Sun
