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The aim of this study was to compare the organoleptic attributes and meltability of selected, commercial dairy-free imitation cheeses (DFICs) with those of their dairy counterparts to thus determine whether commercial DFIC needs to be further developed.

Market research was conducted to determine the availability of DFICs in the United Kingdom (UK) and thus select the varieties to assess. Mild cheddar was chosen for its popularity wide availability in the United Kingdom and Italian-style hard cheese for its complex organoleptic profile. The organoleptic attributes and melting properties of the chosen DFIC products were assessed by using descriptive sensory evaluation and their meltability was assessed using the Arnott test, respectively.

109 different DFICs were found; most of them (74%) presented coconut oil as their primary ingredient. None of the assessed DFICs assessed could mimic the organoleptic attributes of their dairy counterparts accurately; however, one of the non-dairy mild cheddar samples was regarded as potentially acceptable by the assessors of the sensory evaluation assessors. Nonetheless, the meltability of this sample was significantly lower than that of mild cheddar cheese.

The findings indicate that, to obtain products that can mimic the organoleptic attributes and meltability of cheese more accurately, further development is required for the DFIC varieties assessed.

No academic publications have explored and investigated commercial DFICs with similar ingredients to those found in commercial DFICs; the commercial importance of these products may augment in the short term owing to the reported growth in the number of vegan individuals in the UK and in Europe.

This article explores the different ways in which the vegan turn within the animal advocacy movement in Australia has played out for two organisations, Animal Liberation Victoria (ALV) and Animals Australia. Previous research has found that this promotion of veganism has occurred to varying degrees for different organisations and this article will analyse some of these variations in greater depth, drawing on the sociological theory of resource mobilisation.

This article provides a case study on the campaigning of ALV and Animals Australia on the issue of the dairy industry, as well as an overview of their histories, with a focus on the changing level of vegan campaigning over time. In order to explore this issue, this article will draw on the campaigning materials of the organisations studied, a wide range of academic literature and interviews with key figures from both of these organisations.

Larger organisations have a limited ability to regularly promote a vegan message due to their need to bring in a large amount of resources to sustain costs such as their office costs and paid staff. It is more grassroots organisations that have far greater scope to consistently and strongly promote a vegan message, although they reach fewer people.

The increasing uptake of veganism will have important implications for animals as well as for human health and the environment. The environmental benefits of veganism become even more significant in light of the urgent need to tackle the substantial threat of climate change.

This article is a contribution to the expanding field of critical animal studies as well as to the literature on sociology and animals. It builds on the limited amount of existing sociological literature on vegan activism and contributes an analysis in Australian context.

Carob has been proposed as a healthy, stimulant-free alternative to chocolate in frozen desserts. In order to make carob a viable and attractive alternative, food producers need to know how it interacts with sweeteners and frozen dessert dispersion matrices. The purpose of this paper is to find the optimal sweetener concentration in three plant-based frozen desserts and carob-flavoured milk dispersion matrix ice cream.

The ideal sucrose concentrations (per cent) were determined through an affective test using the “just-about-right” scale for carob-flavoured frozen desserts made with cashew nut, coconut and soy beverage, as well as milk dispersion matrix. The sweetness equivalence of artificial sweeteners relative to sucrose was determined by the magnitude estimation test.

The authors identified the concentrations of sucrose, stevia and sucralose that produced ideal sweetness in carob-flavoured frozen desserts. Concentrations for soy-based frozen desserts differed from the other dispersion mediums tested. Plant-based frozen desserts exhibited a higher ratio of sweetening power of stevia and sucralose to sucrose compared to milk-based ice cream by a factor of 1.18 and 1.14, respectively.

This study undertook a comprehensive survey of a dairy-free and chocolate-free alternative to chocolate ice cream and found new sweetener interactions with dispersion matrices in carob-flavoured frozen desserts. The findings in this study can be applied in the development of carob-flavoured soybean-, coconut-, cashew nut- and milk-based frozen desserts.

After working on the assignment questions, the learners can achieve the following learning outcomes: understand the buying behavior towards sustainable products in the context of mindful consumption and product characteristics, appraise the market segmentation and positioning strategy of a sustainable business, understand the application of 5C’s framework for a sustainable business and critically evaluate a new sustainable business’s challenges in the emerging business environment.

Dr Joe Fenn, founder and director of PFoods, with extensive experience in the pharma industry overseas, observed a decline in the consumption of traditional dairy foods. Alternative plant foods come as a savior to people who are lactose intolerant and offer a host of health benefits with low environmental impact. Riding on the waves of veganism and sustainable foods, he saw an opportunity in India. PFoods developed and launched two products, namely, Just Plants (plant-based milk alternative) and Plotein (plant-based protein alternative), in collaboration with scientists at the Indian Institute of Science, a premier scientific institution in India, and PMEDS (PreEmptive Meds), a US-based nutraceutical Company. PFoods launched and pilot-tested Just Plant, a dairy alternative substitute for milk in select reputed organizations in Bangalore. The upcoming challenges for Fenn would be to select the right segment, educate the market and position the product that would resonate well with the target customers.

The case study suits undergraduate and graduate courses such as marketing management, sustainable marketing and sustainable business. The case study can also be used in entrepreneurship management and entrepreneurial marketing courses to introduce the challenges of a sustainable startup. The case study highlights the marketing challenges faced by the disruptive and growing plant-based foods or alternative dairy industry in emerging markets.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 8: Marketing.

This study identifies new factors influencing the adoption of two recently promoted messages in Canada's updated food guide (FG): enhancing pleasure of eating healthy foods (PEHFs) and shifting food choices towards plant protein foods. Currently, limited and contradictory evidence is available regarding associations between environmental values, nutrition literacy, PEHFs, and plant/animal protein food consumption.

An online survey measuring environmental values; nutrition literacy, distinctively based on previous (2007) and most recent (2019) FG messages; PEHFs; and annual changes in the consumption of protein foods was sent to Quebec residents (N = 128).

Greater nutrition literacy of both 2007 and 2019 FGs and greater environmental values were associated with greater PEHFs (ß = 0.248, p < 0.01; ß = 0.209, p < 0.05; ß = 0.423, p < 0.001, respectively). Greater PEHFs was associated with greater consumption of plant protein foods (ß = 0.405, p < 0.001). Greater nutrition literacy of the 2007 FG was associated with greater consumption of animal protein foods (ß = 0.409, p < 0.001), whereas greater nutrition literacy of the 2019 FG was linked to lower consumption of animal protein foods (ß = −0.225, p < 0.05).

Enhancing PEHFs may require increasing general FG nutrition literacy and strengthening environmental values. To encourage plant protein food consumption and decrease animal protein food consumption, the authors recommend promoting PEHFs and increasing nutrition literacy based on newest FG recommendations.

This new evidence may help develop strategies promoting PEHFs and plant protein food consumption, thus increasing uptake of new FG recommendations.

For attendees with allergies, intolerances and coeliac disease, accessing safe, nutritious and good quality food and drink is a vital but challenging dimension of events. This study sought to capture and analyse the lived event experiences of individuals with a variety of food-related health, wellbeing and safety needs.

This study adopted an inductive approach, using semi-structured interviews to gather qualitative data from participants with various food allergies and intolerances or coeliac disease.

Attendees had low expectations regarding food choice, quality and value, which stemmed from past event experiences. Poor information about suitable food and drink, coupled with frontline staffs' perceived knowledge, responsiveness and care were frequently seen as sources of service failures. The data stress how exposure to potentially harmful foods and food avoidance influenced attendees' experiences. The findings also help to appreciate consumers' agency, identifying various coping strategies used by affected individuals to anticipate risks, engage in compensatory behaviours and mitigate the effects of unsuitable food and drink.

This study is unique in examining the event experiences of individuals with food allergies, intolerances and coeliac disease. It demonstrates how practices in the crucial domain of food and drink provision can affect the overall event experience, with potential consequences at, across and potentially beyond the venue and occasion. From a theoretical perspective, the study conceptualises intersections of risk, value-creation/destruction and experiential consumption. It shows the “episodic” and “perpetual” impacts of “risk loaded” consumption, while arguing that diverse value-creation/destruction practices mediate pathways leading to different experiential outcomes.