Soy-based food manufacturer Alpro has announced that the first Flemish soy for human consumption has been harvested.
The company first announced its plans for the new crop in July, after four years of research, in cooperations with Aveve, the Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (ILVO) and the Belgian Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.
The company reported that five farmers are involved in the scheme to cultivate this new crop in Flanders. Their combined soya harvest for this year is estimated to be around 100 tonnes.
Crucial Step
“Alpro is pleased with the first commercial harvest of Flemish soybeans," said Greet Vanderheyden, sustainable development manager at Alpro. "These will soon be processed in our factory in Wevelgem into plant-based food."
"Today, already more than half of our soy comes from Europe. Flemish soy production is a crucial step towards more cooperation with Flemish farmers and an even smaller ecological footprint and fits within our strategic choice for non-genetically modified soybeans."
Vanderheyden added that the company is expecting the first harvest of locally grown soy in the Netherlands "within the very near future".
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Sarah Harford. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
