UK— AAK Foodservice, which specializes in value-adding plant-based oil ingredients, has acquired plant-based butter brand ForA, a brand developed by New York-based startup Fora Foods.
AAK has been manufacturing ForA:Butter for Fora Foods, before choosing to acquire the brand entirely. Financial details of the purchase have not been disclosed.
Rich, decadent, plant-based ForA:Butter is formulated with a combination of aquafaba, cocoa butter, coconut oil, coconut cream and sunflower oil.
The manufacturer states that the butter is an entirely different product from margarine and not comparable to it, being more akin to dairy butter.
It claims that a 1:1 substitution for conventional butter is possible, even in technical applications. It cites laminated dough, such as that used in croissant baking, as not faltering when made with ForA:Butter.
“The ForA brand is a very good fit to our plant-based expansion with premium plant butter products and will provide an additional complementary to our GreenOasis plant-based product line,” said Juan Colmenares, vice president of sales and marketing, AAK Foodservice US.
ForA:Butter is Non-GMO Project verified, certified plant-based, and free from gluten, soy, and palm oil. It is available in 12-lb packs suited for retail, 30-lb packs for commercial kitchens and bakeries, and 50-lb packs for high-volume commercial kitchens and bakeries.
AAK Foodservice U.S. has a production operation in Hillside, New Jersey, where it produces an assortment of products, including mayonnaise, dressings, sauces, condiments, oils, and margarine for food service and retail markets in the United States.
Fora co-founder Aidan Altman has previously secured investment from New Crop Capital and Blue Horizon, amongst others. The backing was used to develop the butter, which was put through rigorous R&D testing.
“We’ve gone through hundreds of different iterations to get where we are today,” Altman said in a statement. An earlier iteration of ForA:Butter debuted at the Winter Fancy Food Show just over four years ago.
As Vegan butter is a growing niche within the alternative dairy market, the butter has been steadily gaining presence within the food service sector, alongside some movement within retail.
Consumers are no longer satisfied with margarine and are driving demand for authentically decadent and functional butter alternatives.
Future Market Insights forecasts the vegan butter market to top US$ 2.7 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 5.7% between 2022 and 2032, surpassing US$ 4.8 billion by 2032.
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