Capture Europe’s biggest flexitarian audience by understanding German consumers

What do German consumers want?

Germany has emerged as a market leader in the plant-based industry in recent years. 

With an estimated worth of USD 461.36 million, the German plant-based protein market is predicted to rise to a significant USD 574.93 million by 2029.¹ This development is driven by strong innovation and investment into plant-based products in the country, and a rise in consumer demand.

Certainly, more Germans are eating plant-based – the country has the highest rate of vegetarianism in Europe and a vegan population of over 1.5 million.² Moreover, a significant 40% of the population describe themselves as flexitarian, an increase of 10 percentage points compared to two years ago.³ 

So, what do German consumers want? Which plant-based foods do they prefer? And, where do they like to eat them? As a business, it’s vital to understand the socioeconomic background of the plant-based market in Germany.

ProVeg’s Smart Protein consumer survey, Evolving Appetites, investigates how European consumer behaviour has changed over the last three years and provides recommendations for food and beverage companies. We’ve broken down this report into country-specific datasets, bringing actionable insights for your country of interest – including Germany.

A socioeconomic perspective

Recently, we sat down with Dr Melanie Speck, who holds the Professorship for Socioeconomics in Household and Business at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences and is a Senior Researcher at the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy.

Watch the video below to unlock Dr Speck’s insights on the Smart Protein survey report, German consumers, and her socioeconomic recommendations for the plant-based market.

You can also read the full German Smart Protein consumer survey, here. 

For more support on your alternative protein strategy, you can get in touch with our experts at [email protected].

1. Germany Plant Protein Market Size and Share Analysis – Growth Trends & Forecasts Up To 2029 (2024). Mordor Intelligence. Available at: https://www.mordorintelligence.com/industry-reports/germany-plant-protein-market. Accessed: 2024-04-24.
2. Rehder, Leif. Plant-Based Food Goes Mainstream in Germany, (2023). USDA, GAIN. Available at: https://www.usda.gov/. Accessed: 2024-04-24.
3. Evolving appetites: an in-depth look at European attitudes towards plant-based eating, (2023). The Smart Protein project. Available at: https://smartproteinproject.eu/european-attitudes-towards-plant-based-eating/. Accessed 2024-03-20.