PROVEG 2025
Impact Report
ProVeg Global CEO, Jasmijn de Boo
Letter from Jasmijn de Boo,
Global CEO
Dear Supporters,
This year, we transformed momentum into visible change. In kitchens, classrooms, offices, factories, hospitals, and boardrooms, and at public events around the world, ProVeg helped more people to choose more plant-based meals – meals that taste good, support health, and protect the planet. Meanwhile, across the food system, our support is paying off: food-service and retail partners tested new products and rolled them out at scale, policymakers drew on our evidence to advance plant-rich standards, and founders that we’ve mentored and supported brought products to market, helping to accelerate the global shift towards plant-based eating.
This year, more than ever, we focused on impact. With every project, we asked: “will this change what people eat, what companies offer, or how policy is drafted?” When the answer was ‘yes’, we provided the resources and guidance needed for a project to thrive. You’ll see that focus throughout this report: schools adding plant-based meals, retailers tracking their protein split and acting on it, institutions updating standards, and teams joining forces across countries to ensure that progress continues.
Our mission remains clear: to accelerate the transition to a sustainable global food system by making plant-rich foods and alternative proteins more accessible and appealing. We pursue this ambitious goal through food innovation, corporate and institutional engagement, policy and advocacy, movement building, and public engagement – all guided by the 5 Pros of taste, health, justice, animals, and environment.
Thank you for your trust, your partnership, and the work you do alongside us.
Together, we will continue to turn practical steps into lasting change
that helps build a plant-based future.
Jasmijn de Boo
Global CEO
How we drive change: our five impact areas
Food Innovation
We help founders to develop and launch better plant-based and cultivated products.
Corporate & Institutional Engagement
We work with caterers, retailers, and manufacturers to expand plant-based ranges, improve product placement and price points, and upgrade menus and recipes.
Policy & Advocacy
We provide evidence and policy briefs that help governments and agencies to embed plant-rich standards, advance procurement policies, and build supportive legislation.
Movement Building
We fund and train mission-aligned organisations, linking national action to a global network and accelerating collective impact.
Public Engagement
Our evidence-based information, Veggie Challenge app, inspirational stories and events, alongside accessible science-based data for journalists, help motivate consumers and inspire those who provide meals, products or news to consumers.
Across all five of our impact areas, we are witnessing tangible progress towards a global shift in how food is produced, promoted, and perceived. These achievements show that our strategic focus on collaboration, innovation, and system-wide change is strengthening our role as a key voice driving the global plant-based movement.
What this looks like in practice: 2025 at a glance
Expanding reach, amplifying advocacy, fostering innovation
Transforming
public-sector menus
Since 2021, our public-food programme has swapped over 72 million meals to meat-free or plant-based. In 2025 alone, we amplified our reach to children, students, patients, and other diners with more than 25 million plant-rich meal swaps.
Accelerating plant-based innovation in supermarkets
The ambitious Lidl x ProVeg Cheese Innovation Challenge drew 55 applications from 20 countries. 10 finalists were selected, with Mö Foods emerging as the first winner with its oat-based Mö Greek feta and grated mozzarella—crafted through a zero-waste process—now in select Lidl stores across Germany for a minimum of three months.
ProVeg Grants: empowering the global plant-based movement
Since 2019, ProVeg has distributed a total of 1,130 grants to organisations across 97 countries, paving the way for local, culturally relevant food-systems transformation. In 2025, this involved supporting 96 organisations and strengthening movements in 51 countries.
UN and COP Engagement: making plant-based diets a climate solution
ProVeg made sure that plant-based diets were at the centre of the climate conversation at COP30 in Belém, Brazil. We co-drafted the Belém Declaration on plant-rich diets and presented it to COP30 organisers. In addition, we launched the Diets Toolkit, which provides guidance to governments for integrating healthy and sustainable diets into their climate and biodiversity strategies.
Kickstarting for Good:
investing in non-profit impact
Our incubation programme for not-for-profit food-system ventures welcomed its third cohort, selected from 959 applications submitted from 95 countries. Collectively, the initiatives kickstarted by our team have raised over US$10m since 2022.
Scaling mission-driven startups through the ProVeg Incubator
In 2025, the ProVeg Incubator supported 10 new startups, bringing the total number of startups we’ve supported since 2018 to 121. These trailblazing businesses have collectively raised US$563 million in funding, accelerating the pace and scale of the global plant-based transition. As a result, 15,000+ stores now stock alumni products, making plant-based products more available to consumers around the world.
Driving the Corporate Protein Transition
Our work in the Netherlands has set the bar for the retail sector to measure and work towards targets for increasing the share of plant-based foods in their sales. 95% of the Dutch market is now using our Protein Tracker tool. This progress has inspired commitments across Europe, and in 2025, two major international retail chains and three other supermarkets at national level either set targets or took first steps to measure their protein balance.
Media and Speaking: amplifying our message
ProVeg earned 3,892 media mentions, with a potential reach of 66 million individuals. Our work was featured in several major publications such as Politico and The Guardian. We delivered 288 speaker engagements and events, reaching 22,520 food sector leaders and professionals, helping to influence public discourse and inspire key stakeholders to take bolder action.
Food Innovation Challenge: nurturing the next generation of innovators
Culturally relevant alternative proteins are crucial to decarbonising China’s agri-food sector. The sixth Food Innovation Challenge attracted 2,500+ students from 196 universities, who collaborated with eight industry partners to design innovative products. The initiative has become a powerful platform for nurturing the next generation of plant-based innovators and strengthening links between universities and forward-looking companies.
Veggie Challenge:
inspiring collective action
With 680,000 global participants, the ProVeg Veggie Challenge supports and inspires people around the world to eat more plant-based food. It has options for vegan, vegetarian, or reduced-meat diets, and daily tips and recipes. In 2025 the Veggie Challenge and Veggie Challenge Teams initiatives reached 73,663 participants and 629 teams, including companies, government agencies, and schools.
Global Impact
Featured results from our country offices
- ProVeg Germany has strengthened its role as the country’s leading voice on the protein transition, supported by high visibility initiatives such as the New Food Conference at Anuga and the publication of its Annual Restaurant Chain Ranking Report. This position has gained further momentum after the German Scientific Advisory Board on Agricultural Policy issued a report calling for greater political support for alternative proteins, reinforcing the policy case for the sector and signalling a more favourable environment for its growth.
- ProVeg UK has continued to expand its school programme, delivering more than 25 million meat-free or plant-based meal swaps in 2025 and over 72 million since 2018. More than 12,000 schools now benefit from improved menus, supported by ongoing training for catering teams and our School Plates Awards Programme.
- An incredible 95% of the Dutch market has now committed to ensuring that at least 60% of protein sales will be plant-based by 2030. Building on this success, the ProVeg Netherlands team launched Eiwitstand.nl, a platform that tracks the plant-based commitments of 190 organisations across supermarkets, catering, wholesale, chain restaurants, and the education sector. By showcasing the extent of progress and future ambitions, the platform encourages companies to make commitments to a more balanced protein split in favour of plant-based options and products.
- ProVeg Spain is accelerating the protein transition by leading advocacy efforts and institutional engagement. The team has co-hosted various events and engaged diverse stakeholders including Spanish policymakers, producers, retailers, and civil society. High impact events such as a showcase at the Danish Embassy on Denmark’s Action Plan for Plant-Based Foods are creating space for new dialogues and paving the way for policy reform.
- ProVeg South Africa acted as the official Veganuary regional partner and secured strong media coverage across television, radio and print. The inclusion of a Veganuary tab in a major national food ordering app, used by more than thirty million customers, significantly broadened public visibility.
- ProVeg Poland has seen major success through policy breakthroughs and engagement with the country’s retail and catering sectors. The School on Plants Programme helped to inspire new national regulation requiring all schools to serve at least one fully plant-based lunch per week from 2026. Additionally, events and roundtables with major retailers are encouraging companies to begin measuring their protein split, with two major retailers committed and engagement with several others progressing.
- ProVeg China is catalyzing the plant-rich transition through supporting national policy, convening key stakeholders, and novel research. This includes co-authoring a new Blue Paper with 48 leading scientists – the paper is the first holistic analysis of China’s neo-protein ecosystem and offers a clear, actionable roadmap to align research, industry, and policy, accelerating the journey from lab breakthroughs to pilot production and market adoption. Additionally, the team is deepening cross-sector alignment and strengthening national readiness for expanded alternative protein R&D investment through strategic events and engagement. ProVeg China’s leadership role in the protein transition ecosystem has been further cemented as the only NGO representative in CIFST (China Institute of Food Science & Technology), a member of the NeoProtein Professional Committee, and Founding Director of Plant-Based Food Alliance.
- ProVeg US has strengthened its role in placing food systems on the agenda of senior policymakers, working with international partners to advance plant-based advocacy at NYC Climate Week and the United Nations Economic and Social Council Youth Forum. ProVeg US provides administrative and fundraising support for ProVeg’s global network, our partners, and grantees around the world.
- ProVeg Belgium is driving food systems transformation across the country through key policy wins. Not only was the organization appointed as the Flemish government’s principal strategic partner for its Green Deal on the protein shift, ProVeg Belgium‘s targeted advocacy led to the removal of some excise duties on unsweetened plant-based milks, lowering the tax disparity with cow’s milk and improving affordability and access to oat- and almond-based alternatives.
- This year, ProVeg Czechia engaged with diverse stakeholders and hosted key industry events. Notably, the New Food Forum provided a launch pad for some significant industry commitments such as the launch of the Czech Chamber for Alternative Proteins. Additionally, the team secured critical EU funding with ProVeg Portugal as well as Czech and Danish partners for the Innovative Strategies to Accelerate Adoption and Consumption of Plant Based Food project. This project will deliver national Action Plans that combine policy engagement, farmer training, events, increased plant-based canteen meals, education for healthcare professionals, and structured knowledge exchange to scale successful approaches across participating countries.
- ProVeg Portugal has established the Collaborative Group for the National Strategy for Plant Protein, bringing together 67 organisations from across the food system to drive coordinated national progress on plant-based protein. The team has also secured EU funding for a project to strengthen the legume value chain, working with the country’s largest farmer confederation, a leading university, and a producers organisation. In parallel, ProVeg Portugal also started catering training in two hospitals, ensuring patients have access to nutritious, plant-rich meals.
- ProVeg Nigeria is transforming the way people are eating across the country. Through their chef training programmes they are providing plant-based culinary training throughout the food service industry, building the momentum needed so plant-based dishes and menus become the norm.
- ProVeg Malaysia has significantly expanded awareness of plant-based eating, reaching nearly 250,000 individuals through events such as the Veganuary campaign and the 31-day Eat for Earth Challenge. Partnerships with diverse organisations such as Tzu Chi Melaka, the country’s largest Buddhist charity, and others, have expanded reach and activated new groups such as environmentalists, university students, faith groups, and vegetarian communities.
- ProVeg Brazil is engaging key stakeholders across the value chain to ensure food system change is sustainable and fair. This can be seen through just transition work with farmers as part of the Cultiva project, where comprehensive technical support is provided to transition farmers to plant-production and agroforestry. This year, ProVeg Brazil was present at COP30 in Belém where the team launched a key study designed to inform and stimulate policy development within government and financial institutions to accelerate food system transition. The team also showed attendees what delicious, plant-based eating could look like by collaborating closely with the event Presidency to prioritize sustainable catering, successfully ensuring that 51% of all savory meals served across the Summit were plant-based.
Food
Innovation
Catalysing change across
the global food landscape
121 ProVeg Incubator startupssupported since 2018 – 10 in 2025 alone.
US$563 million
(€480 million) raised by ProVeg Incubator alumni.
55 applications from 20 countries
were submitted to the Lidl x ProVeg Cheese Innovation Challenge. The winning products were made available in select Lidl Germany stores for a minimum of three months.
Over 2,500 students
from 196 universities all over China submitted ideas to the sixth edition of the Food Innovation Challenge, with winners to be announced in May 2026.
01
ProVeg Incubator – taking great ideas to supermarket shelves
The ProVeg Incubator is the world’s first accelerator specifically dedicated to mission-driven startups that are transforming the global food system with plant-based and alternative proteins, including precision-fermented and cultivated food products and technologies. Based in Berlin, the Incubator offers a tailored five-month programme that supports startups through personalised services and mentorship from more than 100 industry experts.
This year, the Incubator welcomed its 13th cohort – 10 startups from various countries including Poland, Brazil, Singapore, and Indonesia – developing everything from ingredients made from by-products of beer and pumpkin-seed oil (Upcircld Kitchen’s Brew Bites) to next-generation seafood analogues (Profillet’s marine-ingredient fermentation platform). In October, they pitched their products to an expert audience of investors and industry leaders. Since launching in 2018, the programme has nurtured and supported 121 founders from 38 countries. Our portfolio companies have collectively raised US$563 million (€480 million), with their products now stocked in more than 15,000 retail stores around the world. If each plant-based product sold by Incubator alumni companies replaced a conventional animal-based product, the estimated impact in 2024 could include approximately 32.8 million kilograms of CO₂ emissions avoided (equivalent to removing over 7,000 cars from the road for a year), conserving 10 billion litres of water (enough to fill over 4,000 Olympic pools), and avoiding the consumption of nearly a million animals.
02
Lidl × ProVeg Cheese Innovation Challenge
Launched in March 2025, this first-of-its-kind competition connects startups to a major retailer.
- 55 submissions from 20 countries, with 10 finalists mentored through to the end of the challenge.
- The first winner, Mö Foods, secured a listing with Lidl’s meat-free brand Vemondo, with its oat-based Mö Greek feta and grated mozzarella stocked in select Lidl Germany stores for a minimum of three months, dramatically boosting market exposure.
- This level of exposure has the potential to greatly expand consumer access to plant-based cheese, helping to normalise sustainable food choices and accelerate the mainstream adoption of dairy alternatives.
03
Food Innovation Challenge – strengthening China’s academic and talent pipeline
The Sixth Food Innovation Challenge has attracted over 2,500 students from 196 universities across China, with support from eight leading industry partners, to design sustainable plant-based products. The winners will be announced in May 2026. Through the Professor Mentorship Programme, seminars, and roadshows, students developed research expertise and hands-on innovation skills, creating a strong platform to nurture a pipeline of talent, ideas, and sustainable food products for the world’s fast-growing alt-protein market.
Featured Story
Mindful FÜD
Turning rescued apples into a new bee-free honey category
When Canadian founders Venessa Stonehouse and Jacob Cubric launched Mindful FÜD, their goal was to rethink how sweeteners could be produced in a more sustainable way. What began as a small kitchen experiment has since grown into a rapidly expanding food-tech company developing bee-free honey alternatives made from rescued apples.
The idea emerged after an arson fire destroyed Stonehouse’s previous food business. While rebuilding in a small town in British Columbia, she noticed large quantities of apples left unharvested each autumn because farmers could not sell or process them. The idea soon evolved into a new approach to sweeteners — transforming surplus fruit into a sustainable, bee-free alternative to honey.
Since joining the ProVeg Incubator in 2025 and receiving support, Mindful FÜD has expanded rapidly. BeeMindful Hunnie is now stocked in more than 400 retail stores and major supermarket chains across Canada. The product also appears on more than 100 restaurant menus in North America, and is increasingly used by other food brands as an ingredient in new products.
More recently, Mindful FÜD acquired Mellody, one of the most recognised plant-based honey brands in the United States, helping accelerate the growth of the emerging bee-free honey category. The company has also gained strong recognition for its innovation, with BeeMindful Hunnie ranking among the top plant-based products at Plant Based World Expo, and attracting growing media attention.
Looking ahead, Mindful FÜD is raising a seed round to support international expansion, including plans to scale in the United States and enter the UK market. By turning overlooked ingredients into a scalable innovation, the company is helping reduce food waste, protect biodiversity, and create a new generation of sustainable sweeteners.
Participating in the ProVeg Incubator was a pivotal moment for Mindful FÜD. Beyond the funding, the programme connected us with an incredible global network of mentors and founders who are all working toward the same goal of building a more sustainable food system. The guidance around scaling, partnerships, and financials helped us think much bigger about the opportunity for bee-free honey alternatives. Since participating in the programme, we’ve also seen growing international interest in BeeMindful Hunnie, particularly from the UK, which has been incredibly exciting as we plan our next stage of growth.”
Venessa Stonehouse,
CEO, Mindful FÜD
Corporate &
Institutional Engagement
Driving change where
food decisions are made
2.3 million children, students, patients and other dinerswere reached with our plant-rich menus and dishes.
25.1 million meals
were swapped from meat-based to meat-free or plant-based through our public food programmes.
12 new supermarkets or retailers
in ProVeg countries started to measure their protein balance for the first time. This means that in Germany, over 50% of the retail sector tracked their split.
18 major retailers from 5 countriesattended our in-person retail roundtable events to discuss protein diversification strategies.
190 professionals and 19 speakersparticipated in the Czechia New Food Forum.
ProVeg engaged 80% of the largest retailers and foodservice companies by market share in our target markets.
01
Public Food Programme – healthier, tastier, and more sustainable menus
ProVeg is transforming menus by training kitchen teams, rewriting recipes, and testing dishes with pupils and patients. The result: 25.1 million meals were swapped from meat-based to meat-free or plant-based in canteens in schools, universities, and hospitals.
Through our Public Food Programme, ProVeg supported plant-rich food environments across Europe and beyond, with major expansion into hospital catering. As of 2025, ProVeg runs established school food programmes in Germany, Portugal, and the UK, with pilots and partnerships under development in Brazil, Czechia, Poland, and Nigeria. In universities, our teams in Belgium, Czechia, and Portugal are advancing their programmes, with plans to strengthen them further. A major highlight this year was the Programme’s expansion into the hospital food space in Portugal and the UK, joining Germany’s long-standing work in the sector.
Belgium
We work with the Flemish government to support plant-forward menus in universities and colleges through menu consultation, chef training, nudging strategies, and a peer network for catering managers and sustainability leads.
Brazil
We are developing Prato Verde to increase plant-based options within Brazil’s national school meals programme, which serves more than 50 million meals to students every day.
Czechia
We continue to improve our Sustainable Catering Project, relaunching our university work through chef training workshops and sustainability assessments. We are also preparing a plant-rich school programme aligned with the new School Food Standards.
Germany
We combine policy engagement with hands-on school workshops and are expanding plant-based hospital meals through menu optimisation, staff training, and dietitian support. We have also joined the expert group that is revising the German Nutrition Society guidelines for communal meals – a positive step towards mandatory plant-rich standards in schools, hospitals, and care homes.
Netherlands
We are engaging with decision-makers in food service, supporting caterers and hospitals with protein tracking tools, workshops, and commitments. Currently, 14 caterers and institutions are committed to a goal of providing 60% plant-protein in their catering by 2030.
Poland
We piloted our School on Plants Programme in Warsaw and played a key role in securing a new national regulation that requires all schools to serve at least one fully plant-based lunch per week from 2026, with the Ministry of Health citing ProVeg’s analyses and recommendations.
Portugal
Through Prato Sustentável, we scaled plant-rich meals in more than 90 schools, 4 universities, and 4 hospitals, delivering nearly 120,000 meal swaps in 2025 through menu support, chef training, and caterer partnerships.
United Kingdom
We expanded our School Plates Programme to over 12,000 schools, delivering more than 25 million meal swaps in 2025, while laying the groundwork for Hospital Plates through the Plants First Healthcare coalition.
02
New Food Forum – catalysing retail change in Czechia
The 2025 New Food Forum, which took place in Prague in May, attracted 190 retailers, producers, chefs, and policymakers, reflecting the consolidation of the country’s plant-based sector. As well as an engaging programme of talks and seminars, the event provided a launch pad for some significant industry commitments and the launch of the Czech Chamber for Alternative Proteins. Based on post-event survey responses, reported alternative-protein knowledge rose from 30% to 74%, while intent to widen product ranges increased by over 50%, signaling growing momentum toward more plant-rich production.
03
Protein Tracker – data that drives decisions
Developed in partnership with the Green Protein Alliance, the Protein Tracker is a powerful tool for institutional transformation. By providing retailers with a clear view of the sales split between plant- and animal-based protein, we are driving food-system transformation.
- In 2025, 42.6% of protein sales in participating supermarket chains in the Netherlands were plant-based, a slight decrease from 42.7% in 2024. Participating retailers in the Netherlands (representing 95% of the Dutch market) have committed to ensuring that at least 60% of protein sales will be plant-based by 2030, with some pledging to reach 50%, and ProVeg will continue to utilise the Protein Tracker to hold retailers to their goals and ensure transparency in the protein transition.
- ProVeg is also expanding this approach in other countries, which has led to two companies in Poland using the Protein Tracker.
04
Collaborations and reports – shifting markets and policy through evidence and partnerships
Plant-based fish alternatives – first global nutrition audit of its kind
Our report, Out of the Net, Into the Future, looked at the nutritional profiles of the growing number of plant-based fish alternatives sold in supermarkets around the world. The report analysed 100 retail products sold in 11 countries across three continents (2024–25). From fish sticks to canned ‘tuna’, the study compared Nutri-Score labels, protein quality, and micronutrient fortification. This groundbreaking study sets a new standard for a rapidly growing product category, and will help to ensure that fish alternatives meet or exceed the nutritional quality of their conventional counterparts, as this emergent market segment matures.
Advancing affordability and competition for plant-based choices in Germany
In 2025, ProVeg Germany highlighted major progress for plant-based food across both retail and foodservice. Its latest price study showed that plant-based alternatives are now 5% cheaper than animal-based products, reversing the 52% price premium seen in 2022. This improved affordability aligns with rising consumer uptake, with four in ten Germans regularly choosing plant-based options, and production growth of 110% since 2019, underlining Germany’s leadership in Europe. Complementing this, the Restaurant Chain Ranking 2025, carried out with foodservice magazine, assessed major chains on menu range, pricing and promotion, with Hans im Glück setting a new benchmark for plant-based dining.
Driving China’s Alternative Protein Transition
ProVeg China co-developed its Blue Paper on Alternative Protein Development in China, in collaboration with the Chinese Institute of Food Science & Technology (CIFST) and 48 leading experts. The findings were presented to over 80 senior policymakers, scientists, and industry leaders, sparking policy dialogues with Government ministries and prompting consideration of alternative proteins in public R&D priorities. Additionally, ProVeg China was appointed as a founding council member of the Plant-Based Foods Association under the China Chamber of Commerce. ProVeg China Executive Director Nicole Wu also serves as founding director of the association, underscoring ProVeg’s leadership in the country’s sustainable-food movement.
Youth attitudes towards meat reduction, Netherlands – harnessing the power of a new generation
A survey commissioned by ProVeg showed that 45% of Dutch consumers identify as flexitarian and that 20% of 18-24-year-olds want to go vegetarian, signaling a major shift in consumer behaviour. If everyone who intends to cut meat did so, national consumption would fall by 30%, avoiding the emissions of 1.6 million tons of CO₂eq annually.
Plant-based shopping gains a clear price advantage in Belgium
The ProVeg Supermarket Survey 2025, conducted by ProVeg Belgium in collaboration with ProVeg International, shows that plant-based shopping is now cheaper than animal-based shopping in more than half of surveyed supermarkets. A basic plant-based basket is on average 2% cheaper, with retailers such as Albert Heijn, Delhaize, Jumbo and Lidl leading the way through competitively priced private labels. Five categories, including milk and ground meat, are consistently cheaper when plant-based. While availability has reached 67% overall, frontrunners demonstrate near-complete plant-based ranges are achievable. The findings underline price parity as a key driver of the protein shift.
Towards Plant-Rich Diets: A Joint Path for Civil Society and Food Retailers in Europe
ProVeg, together with the World Resources Institute, WWF, and Madre Brava, is playing a significant role in this pan-European project. Running from October 2025 to January 2027, the project convenes civil-society organisations and major retailers around a clear and unified framework for corporate protein diversification. Through high-level dialogue, a large in-person gathering, and collaborative research, the project will help to build consensus on targets and identify proven strategies for shifting business practices.
Strengthening the planetary health diet – influencing global dietary guidance
In January 2025, ProVeg contributed to an international research effort that published Recommendations to address the shortfalls of the EAT–Lancet planetary health diet from a plant-forward perspective in The Lancet Planetary Health. The paper identified key gaps in the original planetary health diet and proposed evidence-based improvements to better align health, sustainability, and equity goals. All recommendations from the publication were subsequently incorporated into the updated EAT–Lancet 2.0 Report, released by the 2025 EAT–Lancet Commission. As the most comprehensive global scientific evaluation of healthy, sustainable, and just food systems to date, the report cements ProVeg’s role as a leading contributor to global nutrition science and policy, strengthening the planetary health diet framework and amplifying ProVeg’s impact on food-system transformation worldwide.
05
More partnerships that extend our reach
Collaborations in 2025 included, but were not limited to, joint promotions with global retailers and recipe reformulation with contract caterers.
Featured Story
Improving plant-based meals in Portuguese hospitals
In many hospitals, plant-based meals are available on request but often lack variety, consistency, or appeal. In Portugal, ProVeg has been working with hospital caterers to address this by improving the quality and availability of plant-based options for staff and patients.
Rather than simply introducing plant-based meals, ProVeg Portugal has focused on practical improvements to menus, supporting caterers to expand from a single plant-based option to two options once a week. Our work includes recipe development and chef training, with an emphasis on familiar, reliable, and scalable dishes.
Through a partnership with ITAU, a large contract caterer in Portugal, ProVeg Portugal is creating impact across four hospitals in Lisbon and two non-profit organisations. Two hospitals began serving improved plant-based meals in December 2024, with two additional hospitals joining in November 2025. In total, ProVeg Portugal supported around 30,000 meal swaps from meat-based to plant-based in hospital settings in 2025.
Existing vegetarian dishes were also reviewed. Meals that previously relied on eggs as the default protein source were reformulated to become fully plant-based, ensuring greater consistency and aligning menus with the programme’s plant-based focus.
Alongside menu changes, ProVeg Portugal delivered two chef training workshops, helping kitchen teams become more familiar with plant-based ingredients and cooking techniques. The organisation also provided environmental impact reports analysing the carbon, land, and water savings generated through plant-forward menu changes. Feedback from caterers has been positive, with some partners planning to publish these reports to highlight their sustainability commitments.
Through these projects, we are updating our operational manuals and integrating plant-based meals across units. With over 60 years in catering and since 2019 mainly focused on hospitals, ITAU is combining traditional Mediterranean-inspired dishes with innovation, creating 100% plant-based menus that go beyond ovolactovegetarian options. The project also emphasizes training all team members, from planning to service, and raising awareness throughout the year, using themed events to promote sustainable and healthy eating.”
Ana Laranjeiro
Manager of Innovation and Continuous Improvement at ITAU
Policy &
Advocacy
Building partnerships,
driving change
122+ signatories
to the Belém Declaration on Plant-Rich Diets, which ProVeg co-drafted. Signatories included NGOs, government officials, and regional authorities around the world.
224 policymakers
engaged through meetings, roundtables, or briefings, with 41 high-level policy-makers or public figures publicly expressing support for or explicitly referencing ProVeg’s policy recommendations.
Policy breakthroughs
were secured in China, Czechia, Poland, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, and Portugal.
120 policymakers, farmers, and retailers
gathered together to back an EU Plant-Based Action Plan during our EU Parliament event, ‘Driving the EU Plant-Based Action Plan Forward’.
01
Global climate diplomacy – from Bonn to Belém
ProVeg’s diplomacy efforts are ensuring that food systems are at the forefront of the climate conversation. Early in 2025, ProVeg co-drafted and launched the Belém Declaration on Plant-Rich Diets. The Declaration calls on national governments to promote healthy and sustainable diets through the drafting and implementation of Action Plans for Plant-Based Foods. Signed by more than 100 stakeholders, the declaration was handed to COP30 organisers, and urged governments to cut food-system emissions while protecting local and regional culinary heritage. And, in order to increase the number of plant-based options at events such as COP30, we released Future Plates, a guide for large-scale event catering, at the 2025 Bonn Climate Change Conference.
Our team also engaged across multiple UN forums and high-level climate events to advance plant-rich diets and sustainable food systems:
- UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-7) – ProVeg’s proposals on the role of food systems and diets were adopted in both the UNEP European Region Statement and the International Major Groups Recommendations. ProVeg also co-hosted a side event with speakers from Brazil’s and Madagascar’s Ministries and shared a draft food-systems resolution with 14 countries, promoting policies to reduce food-system emissions and support sustainable agriculture.
- UNFCCC agriculture negotiations (SB62) – ProVeg delivered a formal submission and participated in the formal Negotiators’ Workshop alongside partners from the Food & Climate Action Group.
- New York Climate Week – ProVeg maintained a strong presence, with CEO Jasmijn de Boo and Youth Board members participating in panels and workshops on policy, health, and food-system transformation.
ProVeg team presenting the Future Plates guide at the 2025 Bonn Climate Change Conference
02
Elevating youth voices on the global stage
ProVeg is empowering the next generation of climate leaders through our 2025 ProVeg Youth Board. The Board brings together young advocates from around the world to speak at UN events and shape our campaigns. At the ECOSOC Youth Forum, ProVeg and the Youth Board co-hosted The Future of Food is Ancestral, an event that highlighted traditional plant-rich diets, connecting them to ProVeg’s mission. By giving young people a platform, we are building a powerful generational wave of advocates who will drive the future of our food system.
03
European Union – momentum for a sustainable action plan
- Despite one of the most conservative European Parliament compositions in recent years, we managed to achieve a number of tangible legislative outcomes:
- Achieved direct inclusion of two amendments drafted by our EU team in the parliament draft report on public procurement—a tangible policy milestone reflecting growing influence.
- Together with partners at WePlanet and EVU, as well as industry, civil society, and supportive EU countries, ProVeg coordinated advocacy and public campaigning that, in March 2026, helped prevent a broader ban on plant-based food names. As a result, widely used product formats (such as burgers, sausages, and nuggets) remain permitted for plant-based products despite some restrictions.
- 50+ meetings with MEPs, European Commission and national attachés were held, while plant-based food was kept high on the agenda, given the strong focus on a green transition by the upcoming Danish EU Council Presidency.
- We published Future Fit Farming, a brief on shifting agriculture away from animal reliance, and co-authored Blueprint for an EU Action Plan for Plant-Based Foods. Through reports such as these, we are helping to provide the evidence and strategies needed to drive systemic change.
- We organised an EU-Parliament event, Driving the EU Plant-Based Action Plan Forward, co-hosted with our NGO Task Force and attended by 120 stakeholders, including policymakers, farmers, and industry leaders. Significantly, Commissioner Christophe Hansen publicly backed our Blueprint launch on the need for increased plant-based crop productions in the EU with support from 70+ organisations for the first time.
- Our 2022 report Amplifying Farmers’ Voices continues to serve as a crucial reference in 2025, framing discussions at an EIT Food protein-diversification roundtable. The report highlights how plant-rich diets can play a central role in the transition to sustainable alternative proteins, supporting higher margins and greater security through long-term industry partnerships.
04
National breakthroughs
Policy wins and progress around the world
Our influence extends far beyond the Brussels political ecosystem – we work with national governments and public institutions around the world to embed sustainable food systems into national, regional, and local policy.
China
To help bridge the policy gap between China and global best practices, we submitted a formal recommendation on the draft legislation Industry Standard for Plant-Based Food, addressing key gaps in definitions, product classification, and labeling requirements.
Czechia
ProVeg helped to successfully block the proposed ban on ‘meaty names’ for plant-based products on a national level, thereby protecting fair labelling practices for both consumers and producers.
Poland
Several plant-forward inputs were added to Poland’s Development Strategy 2035 draft project at ProVeg’s recommendation.
Belgium
ProVeg organised a European Commission canteen event, attracting more than 100 registrants, directly engaging EU Commission staff.
Netherlands
ProVeg’s efforts paid off in a great policy win as the Dutch food regulator temporarily suspended its ban on the labelling of plant-based products such as ‘mince’. Our petition secured over 25,000 signatures and our team will continue to engage with the Dutch government to overturn the proposed law altogether.
Germany
We have secured recognition of plant-based and alternative proteins in key policy areas — from their inclusion in the High-Tech Strategy to helping ensure the government supports allowing plant-based foods to use familiar names like ‘burger’ or ‘sausage’. A major milestone is €45 million in dedicated funding for 2025–2026 to accelerate alternative protein development.
Portugal
The country’s Revised National Energy and Climate Plan now promotes plant-based protein. ProVeg also submitted a proposal to add sustainability considerations to national dietary guidelines.
Featured Story
Belém to the world
Advancing plant-rich diets at the heart of global climate action
ProVeg continued to shape global food policy at COP30 in Belém, Brazil, and beyond. During the summit, we launched the Diets Toolkit, offering governments guidance on integrating healthy and sustainable diets into climate and biodiversity strategies under their Nationally Determined Contributions and National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans. We also relaunched the Belém Declaration on Plant-Rich Diets, renewing the call for National Action Plans.
ProVeg played an active role throughout COP30.
We co-hosted an official side event, speaking alongside government representatives and policy experts from Brazil and Denmark. We took part in press conferences with Rasmus Langhoff, Head of the Danish Parliament’s Delegation to COP30, and held meetings with high-level policymakers, including Austrian MEP Lena Schilling, who endorsed the Declaration. Our team also led workshops at the Action on Food Hub, addressing key issues such as financing the food systems transition.
We also utilised the opportunity of COP30 to present new evidence and to advance practical action. We launched the report Increasing Income, Respecting the Planet, Nourishing People, which shows that transitioning from farmed animals to plant-based agroforestry can increase Brazilian producer income by 110% per hectare. Beyond the policy space, the Plant-Based Cuisine Guide and our Belém Gastronomia Sustentável initiative supported 22 local businesses in adding plant-based Amazonian dishes to their menus.
ProVeg is a driving force behind the global transition toward healthier, more sustainable food systems. Their leadership on the Belém Declaration on Plant-Rich Diets exemplifies their ability to mobilise international support. As Denmark moves forward with its own National Action Plan for Plant-Based Foods, we believe it is vital for other nations to adopt similar frameworks. ProVeg’s science-backed advocacy is key to ensure protein diversification stays at the heart of the global climate agenda.”
Rasmus Langhoff
Head of the Danish Parliament’s Delegation to COP30
Movement
Building
empowering
local leaders and ideas
112 grants totalling US$1.6 million were awarded to 96 organisations in 51 countries, thereby empowering local groups to create tangible real-world change.
959 applications from 95 countries were received by Kickstarting for Good,
ProVeg’s global incubator programme for non-profit initiatives transforming the food system. This is more than double the previous year, indicating a growing worldwide interest in plant-based solutions.
18 new non-profit initiatives
were supported by Kickstarting for Good in 2025. The programme has nurtured more than 30 initiatives since its inception in 2023.
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ProVeg Grants – fuelling global change
The latest ProVeg Grants cohorts comprised 112 grants in 51 countries, from advancing projects for public-health advocacy to community VegFests. These grants are empowering diverse, high-impact initiatives around the world, including the following:
South Africa
Physicians Association for Nutrition (PAN) South Africa is raising awareness about the life-saving potential of plant-based diets and driving change toward whole-food, plant-based nutrition across the globe. With support from ProVeg, PAN South Africa is advancing a Dietary Guidelines Initiative aimed at helping influence the country’s national dietary guidelines to better reflect the health and sustainability benefits of plant-based diets.
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Initiative for Progress and Environmental Protection (Initiative Pour Le Progres Et La Protection De L’Environnement) is engaging communities toward plant-based dietary change in the city of Goma. The organisation is accelerating existing school and community programmes that promote plant-based diets in the DRC, involving teachers, activists, civil-society actors, and policymakers.
Latvia
Augam is inspiring practical shifts toward plant-based eating by organising three successful VegFests, thereby helping to build vibrant local communities.
In order to further strengthen local movements, we hosted a networking and capacity-building event in Mexico City in May, bringing together eight groups for peer learning and collaboration. We also sponsored three conferences, building relationships with potential partners and cementing our bonds with our current grantees.
We have also streamlined our grant-giving operations by adopting AI tools, expert input, and Granti, a new application platform that is making the process more efficient for both applicants and our team.
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Kickstarting for Good – an accelerator for non-profit pioneers
Submission numbers keep rising for the world’s first incubator dedicated to food system nonprofits.
- A record-breaking 959 submissions were received, from which 18 initiatives graduated in the 2025 cohort.
- In total, US$300,000 (€250,000) was awarded this year (comprising individual grants ranging from US$5,000-50,000, with every graduate receiving at least US$5,000 in seed funding.
- Collectively, the initiatives kickstarted by our team have raised over US$10m since 2022.
Tailored Food, led by Taylor Quinn, won first prize for its community-centred approach to culturally grounded sustainable diets. The audience award went to Jains for Ahimsa in Philanthropy, founded by Shreya Ghodawat, which mobilises global Jain philanthropy toward high-impact, Ahimsa-aligned solutions. Ahimsa is the ancient Indian principle of nonviolence and respect for all living beings, a key tenet in Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism.
Taylor Quinn of Tailored Food, winning first place at K4G’s Pitch Day, with ProVeg Founding President Sebastian Joy
Featured Story
From question to global movement
The Electric Sheep journey
Every transformative organisation begins with a simple question.
For Electric Sheep, it was this: What if a generation of builders could be empowered to create AI that prioritises the protection of people, the planet, and all its ecosystems and species—above everything else?
That question shaped Electric Sheep’s mission to move ethical AI from intention to action. Rather than focusing solely on ideas, the organisation built practical pathways to help people turn concepts into deployed AI-for-good products, supporting builders from “I have an idea” to “I’ve shipped something real.”
In early 2025, Electric Sheep launched the Futurekind Fellowship, uniting 120 fellows across 14 time zones. Together, they developed 35 highly commended projects, many of which advanced into further development through continued mentorship—demonstrating the power of structured support in accelerating ethical innovation.
Later that year, Electric Sheep partnered with Open Paws, another graduate of Kickstarting For Good, and hosted its first Code for Compassion hackathon in the Bay Area, bringing together 81 developers to create 16 AI prototypes for animal advocacy. Built around real-world challenges sourced with Open Paws, another K4G graduate, these tools addressed critical gaps faced by chronically under-resourced organisations. For many participants, the hackathon led directly to paid work in AI for impact.
Today, Electric Sheep, alongside Open Paws, operates a 6,000 square-foot campus in Bengaluru—the world’s first physical accelerator dedicated entirely to AI for planetary and animal protection. From this hub, the organisation is scaling Code for Compassion globally, with 24 hackathons planned for 2026 following five in 2025, including a high-profile Mumbai event recognised for AI supporting animal rescue operations.
What began as a single question has become a global movement, proving that AI can be built for compassion, protection, and lasting planetary good.
Without K4G, Electric Sheep and its partners would not be on the cusp of pioneering not only a new kind of animal advocacy, but also a new kind of AI—one that puts the protection of our planet and its sentient life first. That’s remarkable when you think about it.”
Ash Singh,
Founder and CEO
Public
Engagement
inspiring action and shaping the narrative
3,892 media mentions, with a potential reach of 66 million individuals.
22,520 food industry professionals were reached through ProVeg events and speaking engagements.
Food System Data
relaunched as an open, evidence-based hub for researchers, policymakers, and advocates.
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Food System Data – facts at your fingertips
We relaunched Food System Data, a comprehensive online platform that transforms complex food system information into clear, data-rich infographics. This new resource provides policymakers, advocates, and researchers with critical, scientifically-based facts on emissions, land use, deforestation, and the health impacts of our current food system. By highlighting the latest evidence and emerging opportunities – including the rise of alternative proteins – the platform empowers stakeholders to make data-driven decisions. In a world of information overload, Food System Data is the go-to resource, providing concise and reliable information that is helping to drive meaningful change.
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ProVeg voices on global stages
Various events and Veggie Challenge, Malaysia: Through its events and speaking engagements, ProVeg Malaysia engaged more than 1,300 participants, while its Veganuary online campaign reached over 216,000 individuals. Highlights included the Green Iftar community dinner, where refugee chefs prepared plant-based dishes for local guests and refugee communities, as well as the Eat for Earth Challenge, delivered in partnership with Tzu Chi Melaka, the country’s largest Buddhist charity.
Plant-Powered Perspectives conference, Poland: ProVeg spotlighted retailer leadership and engaged with major retail chains to discuss how supermarkets can accelerate the shift toward plant-based diets.
Food & Beverage Innovation Forum, China: ProVeg China’s Executive Director Nicole Wu’s keynote speech, which was attended by 300 industry leaders, aligned alternative-protein goals with national policy, thereby strengthening ProVeg’s influence in China’s food-innovation landscape.
World of New Proteins Hall, IFFA Frankfurt: ProVeg Germany co-launched the trade fair’s first alternative-protein pavilion and presented fresh research on plant-based nutrition to industry delegates.
São Paulo Climate Week, Brazil: ProVeg was invited to speak on a panel at São Paulo Climate Week. The discussion focused on the beef supply chain and the push for deforestation-free meat. Highlighting the bigger picture, our representative emphasised that reducing meat consumption—not just making it more sustainable—is essential for climate action.
AVA Summit, Kenya: The inaugural AVA Africa Summit in Nairobi marked a pivotal moment for Africa’s plant-based movement. Our team spearheaded critical discussions on sustainable food systems, and ProVeg Nigeria Country Director Hakeem Jimo delivered the opening remarks, emphasizing that Africa’s culinary heritage must guide food transformation.
ProVeg teams also delivered sessions and talks at both international and local conferences, including Effective Altruism Global and Internorga, as well as a variety of plant-based festivals and major events. By maintaining a strategic presence on these global stages, we foster the essential connections that help transform ideas into tangible change.
Featured Story
Netherlands Enterprise Agency
Turning challenges into plant-powered change
When the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) decided to participate in ProVeg’s Veggie Challenge Teams, the goal was clear: to explore how a large organisation could shift employee eating habits towards a more sustainable, plant-based diet.
With 107 employees participating, the journey was not without challenges. Changing daily routines, swapping familiar meals for plant-based alternatives, and confronting the question of “Will it taste as good?” proved difficult for many.
Veggie Challenge Teams and the app became vital tools, offering daily inspiration and tasty new recipes that helped make the transition easier. Working in teams added motivation and sparked conversations around the office about how best to approach the challenge together.
By the end of the challenge, participants had not only reduced the ecological footprint of their meals but also developed a lasting awareness of how everyday food choices affect the planet. Many employees reported that they would continue to make more plant-based choices beyond the challenge. The experience showed how structured support, friendly competition, and practical tools can turn a simple initiative into a meaningful shift in behaviour, demonstrating that even small changes in diet can add up to a significant environmental impact.
As the Netherlands Enterprise Agency, we want to contribute to a sustainable society, which is why our organisation participated in the Veggie Challenge Teams… The app provided us with new tasty recipes and inspiration every day. Participating in teams was motivating and naturally led to discussions about how best to tackle this challenge… Participants have become more aware of the impact of their eating habits, and most have indicated that they will continue to make their diet more plant-based. We can recommend every organisation to take on this challenge with their employees!”
Esther van Nes
RVO innovation advisor
What comes next – 2026 roadmap
As we reflect on a year of international impact, it’s clear that we’re still in the early stages of a fundamental global shift. Transitioning the food system is a complex challenge, but our systemic approach ensures that decision-makers at all levels—from corporations and policy-makers to public food providers and finance actors—are equipped and inspired to make change happen.
Our focus for the future
Our strategy is built on core principles that aim to accelerate the protein transition. We are committed to scaling our most successful initiatives, forging influential partnerships, expanding our global presence, and building an organisation that can sustain this ambitious growth.
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Driving a plant-forward transition
We’re expanding our flagship programmes in order to have a bigger impact in more countries. This includes engaging with the most influential and relevant companies in retail and catering in order to make plant-rich options more accessible, affordable, and attractive, as well as continuing to work with government and public institutions to implement our recommendations and create policy environments that support a plant-forward food system. By 2026, our goal is for corporates and institutions to sell and serve a greater share of plant-based and plant-rich options, and for policymakers to commit to and implement measures that drive a systemic shift towards a plant-rich global food system. This work is driven through our key programme areas:
- Corporate Protein Transition
- Public Food
- Plant-Rich Policy
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Expanding our global presence
We will strengthen our global footprint by establishing offices in more countries of strategic importance. This expansion will allow us to better support our country teams, scale successful interventions, and build influence with key stakeholders in crucial markets.
3
Building an effective and motivated organisation
Our people are our greatest asset. We are committed to fostering a strong organisational culture that supports our ambitious growth mindset. By ensuring strategic alignment across all our countries and departments, we can maximise our collective impact.
ProVeg Team
Learnings to guide us
While our journey is not without its challenges, it’s our ability to adapt and learn that makes us authentic. We’ve learned that a one-size-fits-all approach to institutional change doesn’t work – success requires tailored solutions that respect cultural, political, and economic nuances.
We’ve also come to understand the immense power of collaboration – from engaging with traditional farmers to partnering with major retailers – and how a mission-driven approach can unite diverse stakeholders under a shared goal.
This roadmap will turn learnings from 2025 into concrete delivery – more institutions changing menus, more retailers setting measurable targets, more public guidelines updated – and ensure that ProVeg is sufficiently equipped and financed to sustain and accelerate the gains we’ve made so far. In 2026, we will scale what is working well in high-leverage countries, and lock in standards that make plant-rich eating the easy default.
Our financial overview
Our financial health is the engine that powers our mission. This year’s report provides a transparent look at how every donation is strategically invested to create a more sustainable and equitable food system.
The overview below reflects our commitment to efficient management of resources, ensuring that your support has the greatest possible impact.
Closing letter from Sebastian Joy,
Founding President
Dear friends and partners,
ProVeg was founded in order to make practical change at scale. This year’s Impact Report clearly indicates where that change is already measurable and where it is emerging through changes in policy, markets, and culture. It also shows that there is much work still to do.
Three signs of progress are evident. First, our teams and partners are moving menus, retail shelves, and standards in the right direction. Second, the for-profit and non-profit startups we nurture and support play a pivotal role in transforming our food system. Third, ProVeg’s collective voice is now being heard in the spaces where food policy is shaped.
We will continue to focus on interventions that are impactful, cost-effective, and easy to replicate. We will share our methodology, learn from the setbacks we’ve faced, and keep our language clear and honest. Most of all, we will stay practical – building the alliances that make plant-rich eating the default for people everywhere.
Thank you for your trust and for the work you do alongside us.
Sebastian Joy
ProVeg Founding President