Asia's first vegan, liquid egg substitute launches in Mumbai

Using crops that are common in India, Evo Foods has developed a liquid egg substitute with a taste and texture resembling that of eggs laid by chickens.

While vegetarianism was normal in India eons before meatless Mondays were adopted elsewhere, the majority of Indians aren't vegetarian or vegan, and eggs are one of the country's most prevalent animal-based foods. To combat greenhouse emissions and animal welfare issues associated with industrial egg production, Evo Foods set out to create a protein-rich alternative and is now close to launching. A recent preview event sold out within an hour, and the product will start being served in 25 Mumbai restaurants later this month, with direct-to-consumer sales to begin soon after.

Claiming to be higher in protein than traditional eggs, Evo's liquid eggs are made of mung beans, chickpeas and peas; the Mumbai-based startup deliberately chose ingredients that can be easily grown in India instead of relying on imports. With a home market of 1.4 billion people, they might not need to export, either. Evo is Asia's first vegan egg product, ahead of Singapore's whole egg substitute OnlyEg, which is slated to debut in 2022. Watch this space!

(Related: Nigeria's first plant-based startup closes pre-seed funding round.)