First Better-for-You Kids, Now Protein Drinks: Alpro Aims for Premium Niches

Danone-owned plant-based brand Alpro is launching Meal to Go, a line of meal replacement drinks packed with protein and over two dozen micronutrients.

Banking on its single-digit growth in a volatile plant-based dairy market last year, Alpro is gunning to stay ahead of food trends and consumer wishes in 2026.

The European non-dairy leader will soon roll out a range of meal replacement protein drinks across the continent, vying for a category set for rapid expansion amid the protein boom and the uptake of GLP-1 drugs.

“On-the-go meal replacement drinks [are] one of the most exciting and fastest-growing [segments] in Europe,” noted Guillaume Millet, the European VP for Danone’s plant-based division.

The move comes months after Alpro introduced a children-focused line of fortified milks and yoghurts with low sugar and fat, embedding itself into the better-for-you kids category.

Alpro’s Meal to Go range spotlights protein, fibre and micronutrients

Describing the “hard truth” hampering the existing meal replacement category, Millet said that too often, people don’t finish the entire bottle.

“[It’s] either too heavy, too sweet, or simply not truly ‘meal‑worthy’, meaning they don´t get all the nutrients they are being promised, and end up being hungry again soon after,” he explained.

“So we rethought the whole experience. With consumers. Listening, iterating, co-building,” Millet added.

The result of this effort is Meal to Go, a range of drinks featuring a base of soy and oat milk and containing 20g of plant protein in each 500ml bottle.

Each bottle is meant to replace one meal; is packed with fibre, omega-3 fatty acids, and 26 vitamins and minerals; and contains no artificial sweeteners.

Millet said the Meal to Go range will provide “balanced macros” with “no heaviness”, describing the characteristics as “smooth, easy-to-drink textures that you want to finish”.

The drinks will be available across Europe soon, with four flavours to choose from: chocolate-banana, coffee-caramel, mango-passionfruit, and vanilla. “A real meal… in a format that fits real life,” said Millet.

Alpro ramps up health focus amid growing GLP-1 and protein demand

As Ozempic, Mounjaro and other GLP-1 drugs take hold of the food system, companies are being forced to innovate to keep up with fast-changing consumer needs. The rise of weight-loss medications has sent the demand for protein and fibre soaring, and this is where the meal replacement category could win.

Valued at $2B in 2024, the European market for these products is set to double by 2033 to reach $3.9B. The region is also the second-largest for GLP-1 drugs globally, with countries like the UK seeing a twofold increase in users between 2024 and 2025.

Meanwhile, more than half of people in the UK and Germany (51%) want to change their diets by either reducing meat and dairy or eating more plant-based food. A fifth of consumers want to do both.

Alpro is poised to do well in this space, and perhaps more so than other plant-based brands, given its deep pockets. The brand already veered into nutrition-minded categories (notably, the Meal to Go bottles don’t spotlight the plant-based nature of the drinks) with the Alpro Kids range last year, and has been talking up the 5 Essential Nutrients offered by its yoghurts.

Plus, over 60% of parent company Danone’s dairy and plant-based sales come from products in functional segments like immunity, gut health, indulgence and performance, so the new meal replacement line builds on that.

In an interview with Green Queen last year, Millet reflected on Alpro’s marketing strategy of leveraging health as a gateway to its products. “We’ve started to add nutrients to make sure that there is no excuse, and taste reformulation is ongoing, so that they are always the best in the market,” he said. “If you crack taste and health, you’re a rockstar.”

Alpro’s Meal to Go announcement comes just a week after Beyond Meat diversified into the beverage segment with a line of sparkling protein drinks called Beyond Immerse in the US, outlining how plant-based brands are putting protein and nutrition at the top of their priority lists.