US agri-food giant Cargill is looking to expand its plant-based food offering in China following a successful trial of alternative-meat products with fast-food chain KFC.

A three-day pilot this week for Cargill-manufactured faux chicken nuggets at Yum Brands-owned KFC outlets in Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen was deemed a success after some 7,000 coupons required to purchase the food from the chain’s app were sold. In Shanghai, the coupons sold out in one hour.

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Now Cargill is planning to launch a range of plant-based products in China at the end of June for both the foodservice channel and in retail through a brand called PlantEver. It will be sold online and in stores.

News agency Reuters quoted Jackson Chan, managing director of Cargill Protein China, as saying: “The launch is just the beginning and we look forward to continuing to innovate.”

Cargill raises and processes poultry in China.

China is proving fertile ground for plant-based food providers. US-based Beyond Meat recently entered the market with its alt-meat produce through a deal with coffee chain Starbucks.

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