Tesco’s meat sales are not taking a hit from the proliferation of plant-based alternatives to traditional animal food products, the retailer’s commercial director for Ireland Joe Manning has said.

Even the shopper demographic which is looking to reduce its meat intake is showing a reluctance towards the processed plant-based products on the market, Manning commented. He said that these consumers turned towards fresh fruit and vegetables rather than opting for a product “which doesn’t look like as if it came straight from a farm”.

A similar sentiment was echoed by Bord Bia’s director of global strategic insight Nick Curtis-Davis, who stated that survey findings suggest that consumers do not perceive heavily processed plant-based alternatives to animal products as being healthy or sustainable choices.