Swapping meat for a plant-based alternative costs you 22% more per kilo. At least, that is what the data says. There is a catch, though — and it changes the whole story.
What the data shows
Across 39,378 EUR price records from June 2025 to March 2026, ranked by median price per kilogram:
| Category | Median (€/kg) |
|---|---|
| Legumes | €5.66 |
| Meat | €13.52 |
| Plant-based alternatives | €16.54 |
| Seafood | €20.47 |
Plant-based protein sits 22% above meat at the category level. In Finland the gap is +25% (meat €13.23/kg vs plant-based €16.54/kg). In Slovenia it widens to +36% (meat €13.98/kg vs plant-based €19.00/kg).
Here is the catch. That €16.54/kg median is being pulled up entirely by processed, branded alternatives. Gold&Green oat mince 240g costs €16.54/kg. Quorn pieces 300g cost €18.77/kg. Hälsans Kök vege strips 420g cost €21.31/kg.
Meanwhile, Mercator Sojin Tofu 250g costs €4.76/kg — cheaper than the cheapest meat in the dataset. S-Budget Borlotti beans clock in at €1.11/kg.
Plant protein — branded vs whole food (€/kg)
Source: Sivix, EUR markets, 2025–2026
The plant-based premium is not in the plants. It is in the products.
Why this happens
A pea does not look like a burger by accident. It takes a food scientist, industrial equipment, and a marketing budget to turn field crops into something that sizzles in a pan. Plant-alternative brands are also recovering R&D costs and building shelf presence in a category that is still relatively young. All of that sits in the price — on top of the raw ingredient.
Tofu and legumes have none of that overhead. They have been on shelves for decades, come with minimal processing, and nobody spent €40 million positioning chickpeas as a lifestyle choice.
What it means for you
If your goal is to eat less meat without spending more, the data is clear: tofu and legumes are your aisle. Mercator tofu at €4.76/kg, SoFine organic tofu at €9.36/kg — both cheaper than the average kilogram of meat in the dataset. Canned legumes are cheaper still.
If you want the convenience of a drop-in meat substitute, expect to pay a 25–36% premium depending on your market. That is a real cost, and the data shows it is a branding and processing tax as much as anything else.
The eco choice is only expensive if you buy the packaged version of it.
Data source: Based on 39,378 EUR price records collected by Sivix users across 12 markets. Data reflects real shelf prices as reported at the time of purchase, June 2025 – March 2026.