New Decade, Same Plant-Based Revolution

A little over one week into 2020 and it is already the year of plant-based. Last weekend, everything about the Golden Globes was in fashion. Including a high-end plant-based meal served to 1,300 very high profile guests. The meal was made up of golden beet soup, king oyster mushroom scallops, mushroom risotto, and a roasted vegetable mix.  The leadership of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association said they found the “climate crisis impossible to ignore.” They were challenged to do better and decided to serve an entirely plant-based meal. They also served water in glass bottles with paper straws to eliminate waste from single-use plastic. 2020 is the first year any award show like the Golden Globes went completely plant-based. So why does the plant-based movement seem to have so much more traction than the other diets that come and go? We know the connection to a larger mission is part of this long-lasting movement. A plant-based diet is not just good for our health, but it’s also good for the environment. Consumers are seeing the effects of climate change around them every day - wildfires, violent hurricanes, and rising sea levels all have struck a chord. Not even the uber-rich celebrities at the Golden Globes can buy themselves out of climate change, but they, and we, can support brands that are doing their part to slow it down.The success of the Impossible Burger and Beyond Meat are examples of plant-based brands that are talking about their mission to connect with consumers. Our digital research platform, I-Factor® was created to give smaller brands big data and insights at a fraction of the cost and in a fraction of the time or traditional research. The platform lets brands talk directly to consumers and delivers quantifiable data and insights that unlock the consumer subconscious to uncover the whys behind the buy. Impossible Foods has an I-Factor score of 43, and we have to believe that the fact that Impossible Burgers requires 96 percent less land, 87 percent less water, and 89 percent fewer emissions than the traditional burger must have something to do with it. But meat alternatives aren’t the only category where the plant-based trend is seeing success. Consumers are eating Explore Cuisine, a plant-based and protein-packed pasta, using Sproud, a Vegan Pea Milk, in their coffee and are about to be introduced to Else Nutrition, plant-based toddler formula that is on a mission to change the way we feed our children. Even indulgent ice cream brands like Jeni’s and VanLeeuwen now offer milk-free vegan ice cream. These brands I-Factor scores of 40 and 45 respectively show their shift to include some dairy-free flavors is creating strong connections with consumers. Are you looking for a way to help your brand stand out?  That’s where I-Factor comes in. Let’s talk.