Aldi Switzerland has launched a new chicken fillet alternative made with naturally fermented mycoprotein from Libre Foods, the B2B food ingredient unit of Swiss food producer Planetary.

The fillet has launched under Aldi’s MyVay brand, available in 242 stores across Switzerland since 7 July at recommended retail price parity with chicken fillet. This marks a breakthrough in the industry’s efforts to provide affordable and sustainable protein alternatives that can compete with traditional animal-based varieties.

The MyVay Gourmet Filet product is minimally processed, containing just four natural ingredients and offering a good source of protein and fibre while being low in saturated fats.

Planetary is celebrating the launch as the first milestone in its B2B ingredient sales scale-up journey since it integrated Libre Foods’ assets as its dedicated B2B food ingredient business unit.

David Brandes, CEO of Planetary, said: “With Aldi, amongst other customers selecting our naturally fermented mycoprotein, we are proving sustainable proteins can match the price and experience of animal-based protein”.

“As the only viable industrial mycoprotein producer in continental Europe, we’re showing that fermentation at industrial scale can deliver affordable, scalable alternatives today.”

Planetary’s industrial capacity expansion strategy places its fermentation platform, BioBlocks, at the centre of its future growth. The company is rolling out the licensing of the technology across the agricultural industry to enable the conversion of feedstock into higher value mycoprotein ingredients.

To support its industrial scale-up, Planetary secured a CHF 1.8 million (approx. $2.2 million) grant from Innosuisse, Switzerland’s innovation agency, under its Startup Innovation Project grant scheme. This, in addition to previous funding raised by the company, will help maximise production at its site in Aarberg, Switzerland.