SINGAPORE (June 19): More than three decades ago, Chou Shih Hsin, a vegetarian, did not really have many choices on what he can eat. Sensing the market potential from people like himself, Chou founded Growthwell in 1989, to import foodstuffs for vegetarians.
From merely importing foodstuffs, Chou soon expanded into manufacturing of vegetarian foodstuffs under the Su Xian Zi brand. Now, with his two sons Justin and Colin, Chou is bringing Growthwell to the next stage, as they join hands to bring a new kind of meatfree, yet protein-based, foodstuff to the market.
In the past, people would typically view plant-based protein as mock meats, because it is usually in the form of gluten and barely contains any nutritional value. These mock meats serve to imitate the taste and texture of certain meats or meat dishes, explain the Chou brothers.
The way Justin sees it, this is why alternative meat did not have a huge market appeal back then. But recently, Justin, who is an executive director of the company, has been noticing a change in consumer trend, whereby meat eaters are demanding healthier plantbased products.
“When you add these things together, along with this great opportunity and the foundation that our parents have built, I think it is a very good platform for us to bring the business to the next level,” says Colin, who is the company’s commercial director.
“Consumers nowadays are not just looking to find a meat alternative. They are looking out for more nutritious and healthy products. And that’s why we have decided to transform the family business from a vegetarian manufacturer to a food technology, plant nutrition company,” says Justin.
Now, in conjunction with Israeli startup ChickP, Growthwell is selling foodstuffs created out of the world’s first 90% chickpea protein isolate specially designed not just for meat alternative products, but also for plant-based dairy products. The products are developed using chickpea as the base ingredient.
What ChickP has created differs from the typical alternative protein that has been gaining popularity across the world in recent years. Most of the alternatives are plant-based substitutes of beef, made famous by companies such as Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat.
There is variation in the product range as well. Growthwell’s latest product line is a chickpea protein-based seafood alternative series. The standout product looks like shrimp, tastes like shrimp, but is not at all shrimp. Apart from shrimps, Growthwell has also harnessed the goodness of chickpea protein and created other seafood products, such as squid and crab alternatives.
According to the Chous, these products will be free of allergens, gluten, lactose and hormones, making them one of the safest proteins available for consumption.
Highly adaptable superfood
Evidently, there are sophisticated investors who share Growthwell’s optimism about the market potential, thanks to a younger generation of consumers. According to a 2019 report by consultants McKinsey, plant-based food, the largest source of alternative protein, recorded a 17% increase in sales in 2018, and the use of alternative protein as a food ingredient in consumer products is expected to continue growing. McKinsey estimates that the market base for global meat products comes up to approximately $1.7 trillion. Alternative protein, in contrast, commands approximately US$2.2 billion ($3.1 billion), suggesting strong growth prospects.
On April 27, the company announced it had raised US$8 million in a funding round led by Singapore sovereign fund Temasek, as well as other investors including DSG Consumer Partners, Insignia Ventures, Genesis Alternative Ventures, Brandify, and Koh Boon Hwee, who sits on the board of Temasek.
The proceeds from this funding round will go towards accelerating Growthwell’s growth in alternative proteins and future food solutions. The company intends to take its vision of sustainable plant-based choices to the global stage.
To further drive its growth, Growthwell plans to set up an end-to-end technology centre in Singapore focusing on R&D and manufacturing, invest in its partner ChickP, as well as to launch a chickpea protein-based seafood alternative series using ChickP’s proteins.
ChickP’s plant protein was jointly developed with the Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Compared to the current market option of 70% chickpea protein concentrate, ChickP’s breakthrough offers the world’s first neutral-taste, allergen-, gluten-and GMO-free 90% chickpea protein isolate that is high in nutrition and provides a strong, smooth texture and emulsion stability with no compromise on taste and flavour.
One innovative application of ChickP’s protein is in seafood and meat alternative products, through texturised vegetable protein (TVP) and high moisture extrusion (HME). Chickpea-based TVP/HME products have clean label qualities and the potential to be a highly adaptable superfood with its several nutritional characteristics — high in protein and fibre, and low in carbohydrates and sodium.
Their neutral taste, which does not require further masking through sugar or flavour additives, allows them to be easily adapted to make highly delectable products, providing an edge over other conventional Asian plant-based meat alternatives such as gluten-based mock meat.
Currently, Growthwell is developing a chickpea protein-based seafood alternative collection — ChickP Squid, ChickP Crab Patty and ChickP Shrimp.
Furthermore, the company will be setting up an end-to-end technology centre in Singapore focusing on the R&D of novel plant proteins and manufacturing. Targeted for completion by the first quarter of 2021, the facility will have the latest food technology applications, high moisture extrusion capabilities, and a fully automatic manufacturing production line to scale production and cater to the strong demand for plant-based meat and seafood alternatives in the region.
Supporting food supply stability
In the pre-Covid-19 world, most consumers did not bother about the free movement of goods across borders. That has since changed. “The Covid-19 pandemic has revealed the vulnerabilities of our food supply chains,” says Justin.
“Our decision to build a manufacturing facility in Singapore is a timely solution [that can help] tackle the food security issue. Ultimately, Growthwell strives to be the local and regional champion in supporting the drive to achieve long-term food supply stability,” he adds.
Beyond its current focus on the mass production of ChickP protein isolate and developing new ChickP protein products, Growthwell aspires to expand the distribution of ChickP protein products across key Asia Pacific markets such as China and Australia. It is also planning to develop new plant-based product offerings, including dairy alternative products such as chickpea-based milk and ice cream, in 2021.
To further widen the reach of its products, Growthwell has appointed Country Foods, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SATS Food Services, as its main distributor and partner. SATS Food Services, in turn, is controlled by Temasek Holdings. Besides distribution, SATS Food Services has its main business in the form of catering for airlines operating out of Changi and other regional airports. As such, Growthwell can potentially tap Country Foods’ extensive list of clienteles in hospitality, food services, retail, wholesale, airlines and governments.
“We want people to know that plant protein is a very good alternative [to meat protein] and a very good source of protein,” says Justin, who adds that consumers do not have to turn only to fish and meat to have a tasty, nutritious and high-protein meal.
For now, Growthwell’s products are exported to about 10 countries and being sold in restaurants. But the company intends to target consumers directly in the future.
“We have a consumer brand that is launching in the fourth quarter of this year. But now, as the demand for plant-based protein products is increasing, we are planning to move into the modern trade, such as supermarkets and retail chains, to make our product more accessible to our consumers,” says Colin.
Besides growing their family business, the Chou brothers have a good reason to welcome this — they are vegetarians too.
