Home > Success Stories > Unlocking Growth in the Plant-Based Revolution
Unlocking Growth in the Plant-Based Revolution
Unlocking Growth in the Plant-Based Revolution
-
Business Strategy Consulting
-
Process Management
Lian Yi Food, established in 1988, is a manufacturer of vegetarian food products well known for being rich in fibre, low in cholesterol and free of preservatives. Their offerings include locally made and imported vegetarian products as well as dry foods.
The brand’s continuous efforts to innovate, with a focus on vegetarian products has shaped their growth in the vegetarian food sector. In 2000, they established a manufacturing factory in Singapore, supplying products to local food centres and supermarkets. And to this day, they continue to explore new avenues for growth.
Liang Yi Food was lagging behind larger firms in terms of technology adoption, with little dedicated in-house resources to implement automation projects. Furthermore, they wanted to leverage growth opportunities in the plant-based trend that is revolutionising the packaging industry by enhancing retail accessibility for plant-based products.
Business Strategy Consulting
A business proposal was developed to help Liang Yi plan and reach key stakeholders in the plant-based food industry and become one of the main providers of alternative meat to this market. It served as a guide to Liang Yi to optimally use meat substitute opportunities and ensure readiness for early adopters.
Plant-based Business Plan – “Surfing the Plant-based Wave”
Some key highlights of the business proposals include:
a) An examination of the variety of entry barriers to adoption of meat substitutes that contribute to consumers’ preference for conventional meat: taste, nutrition, convenience, expense law and regulatory, perceived naturalness and culture.
b) Target Customers:
- B2C (meat reducers i.e. Flexitarians)
- B2B (stakeholder partners e.g. restaurants, snack chains
c) A sub-brand “LY Green Gourmet” could be introduced as an extension to Liang Yi’s current range of vegetarian food products:
- Pre Packaged frozen plant-based chicken/pork meat strips for stir-fried dishes
- Pre Packaged frozen plant-based chicken/pork chunks
- Pre Packaged plant-based luncheon meat cubes/dices/strips
- Ready-to-eat / Ready-to-cook (RTE/RTC) retail products
d) Plant-based meat B2B Ecosystem containing crucial information about local ingredient sourcing, pilot production facilities, co-manufacturers, consultants, and many other service providers.
e) Competitor Analysis investigating the go-to-market strategies adopted by key competitors in the plant-based market such as Phuture Food, Growthwell, Quorn, and TiNDLE.
f) A Marketing Plan has been developed to provide a high-level view of the different marketing strategies Liang Yi could use to meet the company’s business objective. It covers various aspects relating to market definition, industry insights, barriers to entry, target customers, competitors’ analysis, and marketing mix.
g) Hybrid Distribution Strategies – e-commerce, online marketplace, yummySG!, third-party networks such as retailers, restaurants, caterers, and snack chains.
Liang Yi can leverage on the ongoing momentum and be part of the journey to bring plant-based food to the masses, by pursuing strategic partnerships to accelerate market penetration and visibility in the plant-based sector.
Process Management
To help identify places for automation and improvement in the production processes, Value Stream Map (VSM), a lean management method that allows Liang Yi to visualise, analyse and improve all the steps in the product delivery process was introduced.
A VSM was developed to provide a representation of the flow of goods from the supplier to the customer throughout the organisation. It provides a basis for the company to identify waste, reduce process cycle time, and implement process improvement. This is essential for Liang Yi who wants to plan, implement, and improve while on its process automation journey.
- The plant-based product is estimated to reach a sales revenue of $300,000, contributing to about 15% of Liang Yi’s total revenue by 2025.
- Projected reduction in production lead time by up to 20%
- Projected reduction in manpower requirements by 30%
- Projected reduction in defects by 5%