Lidl comes to Aldi a few days before - “hybrid meat” on the shelves from Monday

Created: 01/10/2022, 05:13 AM

By: Markus Hofstetter

A woman with a rollator wears mouth and nose protection and passes a shop.

© Lorenzo Carnero / dpa

Lidl tries a meat-vegetable mix.

The discounter is not the first retailer to offer hybrid products.

But he is faster than the permanent rival. 

Neckarsulm - There is a significant trend: consciously to avoid meat or at least to reduce its consumption.

One reason is that, according to WWF, the ecological balance of meat consumption leaves something to be desired.

Animal welfare also plays a role, factory farming no longer appears to be timely.

There are already alternatives.

Purely vegetable meat substitute products made from soy or peas offer a taste experience like conventional meat products, only without the disadvantages.

So-called in-vitro meat still has to be brought to market maturity.

This is meat grown in the laboratory for which no animal has to die.

Hybrid meat conquers the shelves: Rewe sees itself as a pioneer

Between these two extremes there is another option: hybrid meat.

The product consists of a mixture of meat and vegetable ingredients.

Hybrid meat was developed for people who do not want to do without meat completely, but still want to improve their ecological balance and do more for animal welfare.

These are getting bigger.

Rewe sees itself as a pioneer in this segment.

At the beginning of July 2021, the grocer put meat items on the shelves that consist of 50 percent vegetables.

It took two years to work on the "Better Half" product, which is produced by the daughter Wilhelm Brandenburg.

A little later, the Edeka subsidiary Netto followed suit, "Less Meat" has a vegetable share of around 34 percent.

Hybrid meat conquers the shelves: Lidl wants to bring more products onto the market

Now, with Lidl, another retailer is trying out hybrid meat.

From Monday, January 10th, the discounter will be offering minced meat and burger patties made from beef with jackfruit, wiener sausages with carrots and chicken sausage with soy protein for the first time.

Accordingly, it is a matter of a campaign with goods that have a vegetable content of up to 40 percent.

Lidl's hybrid minced meat consists of 40 percent jackfruit © Lidl

According to a company announcement, Lidl wants to use these products to support customers “who want to reduce their consumption of animal products and thus their ecological footprint without completely forgoing meat.” Other goods aimed at this target group are to follow.

Hybrid meat conquers the shelves: Aldi is a few days late

Lidl beats its worst rival by a few days.

Aldi Süd also announces hybrid products in its flyer and in its online shop.

From January 14th, customers will be able to buy salami with organic poultry and pork, which contains 50 percent less meat, under the label “Iss Neu”.

The discounter mentions “alternative plant-based ingredients and whey protein” as a supplementary ingredient.

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