£1m invested in personalised meal replacement service

Abnormal uses nutritional algorithms to create meal replacements tailored to consumers’ diets, health and habits and takes into accounts allergies and intolerances.

Delivered direct-to-consumer, meals can be updated at any time, with each new delivery reflecting any change in a consumer’s needs.

Founder and chief executive Mark Coxhead said: “With the global meal replacement market estimated to be over $18bn (£13.2bn) in 2020 and forecast to continue to grow, complete meals have become a high growth sector with consumers wanting the convenience of a nutritionally balanced meal in a convenient powder format.​

‘No one size fits all’​

“The interest in personal nutrition has rocketed in the past few years – consumers no longer believe that one size fits all. We see a huge market opportunity for Abnormal, which is why we’ve invested over a million pounds and spent two years building a very smart piece of technology in conjunction with bleeding edge nutritional science.”​

Abnormal offers a free seven meal trial, with the option to commit to a 30 meal subscription. The brand has also worked towards a plastic-free end-to-end product by using fully recyclable paper-based single serve sachets and a recyclable cardboard box that uses no adhesive in its construction.

Coxhead added: “Since launch, we’ve seen very strong take up and we’re already working on the next phase of product evolution for abnormal. ​

‘Affordable, healthy meals’​

“Having an affordable healthy meal, that is designed for the individual on so many levels, whether they are vegan, flexitarian or not, and has minimal impact on the planet, is a very powerful proposition.”​

Last year saw a number of food firms launch direct-to-consumer offerings to supplement their retail sales.

Drinks producer Radnor Hills turned to e-commerce​​ to help tackle to challenges of the coronavirus pandemic.

Meanwhile, ready meal manufacturer Symington’s launched its own direct-to-consumer platform​​ in response to increased demand and a shift toward online shopping by consumers.