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THIS has just lobbed three fresh plant-based products into UK supermarkets, but it’s the pastrami deli slice catching eyes. Forget anaemic slices of soy, this is smoky, chewy, and aimed squarely at the deli shelf where tradition still rules.

Italy’s Gruppo Tonazzo, after 136 years in meat, has gone all-in on plants. The family company closed its butchery operations at the end of 2024 and handed the reins to its Kioene plant-based brand, which has been around since the late 1980s. What was once a sideline has now become the centrepiece with attractive packs of mini burgers made from pumpkin, carrots, eggplant, spinach and kale are carried in Carrefour Italy and millions of households nationwide.

Christmas has officially jumped the queue as Waitrose in the UK unwraps its festive range a full four months early, and it’s not the turkey grabbing the spotlight. Instead, the UK grocer is making noise with plant-based centrepieces looking and feeling like the real stars of the table.

This South-Asian pioneer is charting a clear departure from Sri Lanka’s traditional commodity-centric exports. Instead, Miditer is leaning into tiered, value-added opportunities—transforming tropical raw material heritage into branded, certified organic, health-forward FMCG ready for global shelves. With certifications like USDA Organic, EU Organic, BRCGS, Kosher, and ISO 22000 backing its supply chain, Miditer is packaging provenance, sustainability, and functionality into a