Client case: Marley Spoon
“It is a pleasure to work with Schouten’s tofu block”
The home-delivered meal box is becoming increasingly popular. They have also noticed this at Marley Spoon, a global company with more than a thousand employees. Every week, around 30,000 meal boxes are sent to customers in the Netherlands who choose from thirty delicious recipes. These also include vegan and vegetarian options. Schouten recently began supplying the vegan tofu in the boxes. Category manager Marijn ter Horst of Marley Spoon talks about choosing Schouten and the success of the formula.
“It is incredibly inspiring”
Every week, Marley Spoon comes up with new recipe ideas. Marijn explains: “It is incredibly inspiring to work with our culinary team. They are real foodies. Their meal concepts are often just a bit more exciting than what other meal box suppliers have to offer. And that is exactly why customers choose Marley Spoon.”
“Of our thirty menu options, seven are already vegetarian.”
Marijn Ter HORST – Category manager Marijn ter Horst at Marley Spoon
Collaboration between sourcing and culinary teams
As category manager for meat, fish and meat substitutes, Marijn is part of the sourcing team that purchases the ingredients for the meal boxes: “The culinary team develops the recipes and we look for the right products. Sometimes it also works the other way around: then we submit a request for a recipe with a certain ingredient. This is how we create a menu together.”
Knowledge of the latest innovations and the newest products is essential in their work: “Together with our marketing team, we conduct research to find out what consumers want. Once a year we organise a trend workshop. There we discuss the trends for the coming year.” According to Marijn, the vegan trend is continuing: “Of our thirty menu options, seven are already vegetarian.”
“This product is not only popular with our customers. It is also a pleasure for our sourcing team to work with.”
Marijn Ter HORST – Category manager Marijn ter Horst AT Marley Spoon
Good feedback on tofu recipes
Tofu is a popular ingredient for vegan recipes. Since 2021, Marley Spoon has opted to use Schouten’s organic tofu block. “We used to work with a supplier of tofu cubes, but those cubes afford far fewer options in terms of recipes. Furthermore, a tofu block is much firmer. The previous packaging was often damaged during transport. That is why we started looking for a new supplier.”
Marijn’s predecessor came into contact with Schouten through the Green Protein Alliance. After a test by the culinary team, the organic tofu block from Giessen was added to the list of commonly used ingredients: “It is in the weekly menu almost every week. We get good feedback on the tofu recipes.”
A pleasure to work with Schouten’s tofu block
Marijn continues: “This product is not only popular with our customers. It is also a pleasure for our sourcing team to work with. The long shelf life helps us to respond to the flexible demands of our customers and thus reduce food waste.”
With the growing interest in vegan options, Marley Spoon and Schouten are jointly investigating how they can also offer other meat substitutes. “Because these appear less often on the menus, we have to look at how we can also use these products in a smart way. That still presents a challenge, but together with Schouten we will surely find a way.”
Looking for plant-based inspiration?
Do you also want to add (more) plant-based products to your product range? Do you have ideas for vegetarian or vegan products? Contact us about your needs. We are happy to exchange ideas with you about innovative plant-based products.
