How was the idea for Tempeh today conceived?

How can we also introduce plant-based proteins, an important source of nutrition, to India? Henk Schouten, CEO of plant-based producer Schouten, has been focusing on this issue for years.

Henk Schouten: Man with a mission

“Tempeh today’s mission is to sustainably produce highly-nutritious, plant-based products at an affordable price”

Henk Schouten – founder

Search for alternatives for the Indian market

Western meat substitutes appeared to be less suitable for India: Meat consumption is much lower there. While searching for alternatives, it became clear to Schouten that products for the Indian market must meet a number of requirements. For example, the ingredients must be locally sourced, the end product must be able to be transported without refrigeration (within an 8-hour time frame), and it must offer high nutritional value at a low price.

Tempeh today - Indian street food

Tempeh for all of India

Schouten soon arrived at tempeh, a product of Indonesian origin. But how you can you make such a product available to all of India given all the logistical challenges there? Schouten came up with the Small Fermentation Units (SFUs), mini production facilities that can be placed anywhere. The SFUs take care of the tempeh production while Tempeh today monitors the process from the Netherlands to ensure quality and safety.

First tempeh from SFUs

Schouten’s plans have now taken shape: the first SFUs are now in India. The first tempeh will soon be available to schools and the local population. Tempeh today will be expanding the number of SFUs in the future. We can thus help provide people in more and more places with protein-rich food.