Quorn launches new vegan friendly 'fishless' cod fillets

Proving that there’s not much you can’t make vegan-friendly, Quorn is launching sustainable fishless cod fillets.

The fillets will come in two varieties, Quorn Vegan Salt & Vinegar Battered Fishless Filets and Quorn Lemon and Pepper Breaded Fishless Filets, and will be made using a protein derived from fungus to achieve the same texture as the real thing. Seaweed extract was also added to give the fillets a realistic fish flavour.

Geoff Bryant, the technical director at Quorn Foods UK, said: “For the first time ever, more than half of all UK consumers are reducing their meat consumption and 57 per cent of people believe that reducing meat benefits the environment.

“There’s never been a better opportunity for convenience retailers to embrace meat-free products and promote their benefits.”

The Quorn Fishless Fillets are the latest plant-based item to hit the market following the success of the Veganuary campaign, which saw a record 250,000 people sign up this year.

Earlier this month, Greggs launched a vegan sausage roll which has received rave reviews from customers and supermarkets like M&S have launched their own exclusively vegan ranges.

Originally a vegetarian brand, Quorn unveiled plans in August to convert to a fully vegan range, with 12 per cent of their products already marked as vegan-friendly.

The fishless fillets, which took five years to develop, are thought to serve as a more environmentally friendly alternative to fish, as overfishing continues to threaten global fish stocks.

Mr Bryant added: “The launch marks the logical next step in helping people reduce our reliance on our oceans for protein.”

The fillets, which will be sold in two-packs priced at £2.99, will be available in supermarkets from March.