Plant-based food in Poland

Market and consumer insights for food-industry professionals

#SmartProteinEU
Discover new opportunities in the Polish’s plant-based food market. What are Polish consumers’ consumption behaviours and expectations around plant-based food?

If you work in the food industry in Poland, this is a must-read! In this article, you’ll learn how Polish consumers are behaving, what they expect from plant-based foods, and what commercial opportunities exist for the food industry.

Plant-based food in Poland – key highlights:

  • Consumer profile: 24% of Polish consumers identify as flexitarians, while 6% follow a plant-based diet (vegan and vegetarian).
  • Consumption of animal-based products: iIn terms of animal-based food, Polish consumers consume milk (32% daily) the most frequently, followed by cheese (24% daily) and yoghurt (23% daily). In terms of meat, poultry is the most consumed (60% at least once a week).
  • Consumption of plant-based products: looking at plant-based food, plant-based milk (24% at least once a week), plant-based cheese (24% at least once a week), and plant-based yoghurt (23% at least once a week) are the most frequently consumed.
  • Plant-based meat and fish consumption: Polish consumers specifically wish they could buy plant-based burger patties (34%) and chicken breast (34%) in supermarkets. Polish consumers specifically wish they could buy plant-based smoked salmon (29%) and fish sticks (27%).
  • Plant-based dairy consumption: in terms of plant-based cheese, Polish consumers would especially like to see plant-based sliced cheese (38%) and plant-based mozzarella (36%) available in supermarkets. Plant-based plain milk (€37m) accounts for almost 90% of plant-based milk sales (€43m). The remaining 10% come from plant-based flavoured milk (€5.7m). The plant-based plain-milk sector is dominated by almond (€9.1m), followed by oat (€7.5m) and soya (€6.9m). The sector showed double-digit growth in sales value (76%) and even triple-digit growth in discounters (126%) over the past two periods. The plant-based flavoured-milk sector is dominated by soya (€3.8m), followed by rice (€653k) and oat (€630m). Discount stores showed triple-digit growth over the past two periods.
  • Preferred ingredients for plant-based foods: potatoes, rice and beans are Polish consumers’ favourite ingredients in plant-based foods: 45% are in favour of plant-based food products that include potatoes as a main ingredient, 40% prefer rice whereas 38% selected beans.

To learn more, download the report ‘Plant-based food in Poland’ for free here.