Responding to heightened public interest in environmental protection, Nongshim will aggressively promote its vegan food brand Veggie Garden this year, the South Korean food company said Tuesday.

Veggie Garden is a convenience food brand developed by the Nongshim R&D Center and the group’s affiliate Taekyung Nongsan, using a manufacturing technology for plant-based meat alternatives.

“After we came up with our test products in 2017, we worked with famous vegan chefs in Seoul to develop new dishes, and gathered feedback from the vegan community and consumers to improve the taste and quality of the products,” a Nongshim official said in a press release.

Veggie Garden currently offers 18 products -- the biggest range of vegan products from a local company -- ranging from plant-based meat alternatives to frozen and instant foods, sauces and plant-based cheeses, Nongshim said.

Nongshim is the first Korean company to develop a vegan cheese, the company added.

“We will introduce nine more products in February to complete the product lineup,” the official said.

Nongshim will expand its retail channels, both online and offline, to introduce its vegan products in hypermarkets and on e-commerce platforms in January, the company said.

According to CFRA, a US-based market research firm, the world’s meat alternative market was valued at about 22 trillion won ($19.9 billion) in 2018 and is expected to be worth 116 trillion won in 2030.

By Jo He-rim (herim@heraldcorp.com)