Expo panelists: Plant-based products gateway to whole produce

NEW YORK — The word “processed” carries a lot of baggage when it comes to food, but retailers and shoppers need to think of it on a spectrum.

That was one topic that three panelists in the “Finding a Healthy Balance in Retail” session discussed at the third Plant Based World Expo North America Sept. 8-9, at the Javits Center in Manhattan. There were 3,722 attendees, up roughly 20% from 2021, and 232 exhibitors.

Plant-based burgers, often found at restaurants and now at retailers, could be a gateway to more whole-food, plant-based eating, said panelist Molly Hembree, registered dietitian at Kroger.

“There’s a lot of in-between. It’s so important to realize this isn’t an all or nothing, black or white way to approach food,” Hembree said. “We always want to be truthful and not misleading, to not exaggerate the benefits [of plant-based products]. We want our shoppers, our customers, to trust us.”

That said, simply washing and cutting fresh fruits and vegetables is processing it. But then, there’s ultraprocessing, which is less desirable in large quantities, panelists said.

“It’s whole food with fiber, minimally processed, that can help prevent disease. The more we can move to whole foods, maintaining mineral integrity of the food is where we’re looking to go,” said panelist Dr. Scott Stoll, co-founder of the Plantrician Project. The organization’s mission is to educate and equip physicians, health care practitioners and other health influencers about the benefits of whole-food, plant-based nutrition.

“There’s a real risk of confusion to equate plant-based products with healthy products,” he said.

Almost all the show’s exhibitors were marketing processed, plant-based meat, seafood and dairy alternatives, as well as snacks and desserts — rather than whole fruits, vegetables and other plants — but it’s a start to get the industry and its consumers thinking about adding more plants to their diets.

“We can’t expect plant-based products to do it all,” Hembree said.

Perhaps the meat and dairy alternative category has a place in the diet, but people have to balance those alternatives with traditional fruits and vegetables, she said.

Keep the ingredient list honest.

How retailers can sell plant-based

Grocery shoppers will have a lot of questions that store associates aren’t equipped to answer, so a digital, virtual hub of nutritional information, including a nutrition scoring system built with registered dietitians, can help. And so can nutrition training during the onboarding process of new hires.

It could make sense to include traditional, plant-based options, such as fruits and vegetables, in merchandising.

A visually interpretative graphic showing apples, leafy greens, then celery stock and nuts, and then food mimicking a burger, chicken, eggs and dairy could help shoppers.

“There’s a continuum in the plant-based movement,” said panelist Julie Mann, chief innovation officer at Puris, a company that cultivates plant-based foods and ingredients from organic and non-genetically modified sources, and is a large supplier of pea protein. “I don’t think it would be polarizing. It could help.”

It could also make sense to have in-store signage that says, “Hey, kale and apples are plant-based,” Stoll said. A nutrient density chart can be helpful in showing that minimally processed, whole plant foods give you the most bang for your buck. “It would help people understand how to build a plate for a healthy lifestyle,” he said.

Retailers and merchandisers could think of ways to combine these new plant-based foods with whole plants and other items into meal ideas.

Plant-based products need to have nutrition content claims on the packaging, too.

While there are some misleading claims out there, stick to verifiable, authentic claims and certifications.

“There are [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] nutrient content claims that are standardized and have robust research and literature,” Hembree said.

Certifications can help guide better decisions, Stoll said.

“A certification can be a real jumpstart for educating the consumer,” he said.