UK’s first Michelin star restaurant to use vegan meat on its menu

THIS™, creators of hyper-realistic plant-based food for meat lovers, has become the first meat alternative brand to feature on a UK Michelin starred restaurant menu, The Harwood Arms.

The award-winning eatery known for its focus on British food and game, is using THIS™ plant-based bacon to mimic the taste, texture and appearance of meat, in its first-ever creation of a meat-free alternative to its famous scotch egg dish.

Available at the only Michelin-starred pub in London, the meat-free Glamorgan Scotch egg (£5.50) features a mixture of herbs, leeks and THIS™ plant-based bacon to create a savoury and meaty taste.

The partnership follows the increased demand for meat-free options from diners as an estimated eight million Britons are eating more plant-based food now than ever before (Mintel) whilst the global meat substitute market is expected to reach $17.5 billion by 2027 (at a compound annual growth rate of 15.1% between 2020 to 2027) largely due to Covid-19, according to research company Meticulous Research (Meat Substitute Market – Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast (2020-2027)).

Andy Shovel, Co-Founder of THIS™ comments:

“Meat alternatives have often been met with skepticism by Michelin-starred restaurants and chefs so I was actually quite emotional when the Harwood Arms team told us they wanted to put THIS on their menu. Our collaboration represents a major step forward in plant-based food innovation where products are now so realistic, they are welcomed into the world of fine dining.

“To get a Michelin star stamp of approval within a year of launching is a real validation for all of the hard work that our whole team has been putting in and chefs at Sally’s level don’t mess about when it comes to ingredients, so we can all pat ourselves on the back after their endorsement.”

Sally Abé, Head Chef at the Harwood Arms comments:

“The venison Scotch eggs at the Harwood Arms have become a much-loved favourite on our menus over the years, so we knew that if we were going to offer a vegetarian version, it had to really deliver on taste and texture. We spent a great deal of time perfecting the recipe and the addition of THIS™ has given us just what we were looking for.”

The news comes as the UK plant-based meat company recently raised £4m following the launch of a Seedrs crowd-funding campaign, including investment from international footballer, Chris Smalling. THIS™ were the fastest FMCG business ever to hit target and the fastest campaign ever to hit over £1.5m.