Earlier this year, Frosta, a leading German manufacturer of frozen products, launched NPD vegetarian fish fingers across major German retailers, after three years of development.
Frosta, which forecasts sales of its brand of frozen meals to grow in 2022, says part of the success comes from its plant-based innovations, such as vegetarian Asian street food dishes.
“Besides classic dishes like chicken fricassee, Germany’s most popular frozen meal, plant-based innovations like vegan Asian street food dishes managed to pique consumers’ curiosity,” Marketing Director Sebastian Bernbacher said.
Additionally, despite a sharp decline in sales in the overall frozen fish market, Froster’s fish sticks remained a “public favorite,” becoming an increasingly popular choice among consumers, the company said.
Three years for development
In 2020, Frosta expanded into the plant-based seafood category by introducing “Fish from the Field”, a range of vegan classics on the favorite fish dishes (fried, caked and crispy fillets).
According to the German firm, developing alt fish without a thickening agent was challenging. Its R&D team relies on methylcellulose. “That’s why its first vegetarian fish has been launched as “fish from the field”.
But the new vegetarian fish has a new recipe without flavors and additives. After years of research, Frosta’s team developed a herbal recipe made from salsify (a root vegetable in the dandelion family), cauliflower, beans and jackfruit, which made yoga “extraordinary.”
Described as “indistinguishable” from the classic, the vegan product is aimed at the increasingly flexible consumer in Germany. It is produced in a Exclusive production line at Froster’s facility in the seaside town of Bremerhaven.
“After nearly three years, our team has succeeded in eliminating the last addition so that we can now offer consumers something truly new in the freezer,” said Bernbacher.