Technical q&a

What inspired Be Better My Friend’s development of plant-based butter?

Be Better began with a mission to develop a book that guides chefs toward plant-based pastry mastery. Realizing existing alternatives couldn’t meet professional standards, we decided to develop our own when Covid hit and we suddenly had plenty of time and no work. In collaboration with over 20 pastry chefs across Europe, we created a plant-butter that’s by chefs, for chefs. After 18 months of rigorous development, we launched at Sirha in
Lyon, 2021.

Be Better plant-butter is pure, clean, and neutral—designed to enhance, not overpower. Unlike dairy butter, which can mask delicate flavors, our plant- butter respects and elevates the true essence of ingredients like fine chocolates and fruits. With a seamless 1:1 replacement formula, it delivers uncompromising workability, quality, and taste. Plus, it’s allergen-free, cholesterol-free, and guilt-free, saving 82% carbon and 88% water compared to dairy butter.

Pastry is chemistry, and butter is its backbone. It needs to work across a wide variety of ingredients, processes and techniques. Be Better is meticulously crafted for all the iconic recipes—from croissants to cakes. Co-founded by award-winning pastry chef Marike van Beurden, our butter reflects a chef’s understanding of precision and excellence. It has been tested and optimized to ensure stability and performance across the most demanding techniques, offering unmatched versatility for chefs.

The biggest hurdle isn’t technical; it’s cultural. Pastry’s reliance on butter has remained unchanged for centuries. Our mission is to educate and empower chefs, proving that Be Better performs just like traditional butter and that you don't need animals to create pasry. Be Better respects the traditional ways of baking. No need to change the process or recipe. Through training, testing, and hands-on collaboration, we make the transition easy—while emphasizing that Be Better is not margarine but a next-gen butter solution.

Our plant-butter is a perfect symbiose between carefully selected blending premium fats like shea butter, organic coconut, and organic sunflower and the latest technology. The result: it mimics the melting point, stability, and rich mouthfeel of dairy butter, all while being free from hydrogenated fats, palm oil, GMOs, and artificial additives. That is not an easy brief. Also. sustainability is at its core, delivering a clean, neutral, and high-performing product that meets chefs' highest expectations.

Be Better is butter evolved. It performs like dairy butter but goes further—saving 82% carbon and 88% scarce water, expanding inclusivity with
allergen-free and cholesterol-free credentials, and cutting costs for chefs. It respects the delicate flavors of core ingredients and enables guilt-free indulgence with 0% harm to animals or rainforests. In a nutshell, with Be Better chefs can create pastry that is pure in taste, inclusive and free from guilt.

The future is not about plant-based vs. dairy—it’s about creating exceptional pastry without compromise. As chefs more and more embrace Be Better, plant-based solutions will integrate seamlessly into their craft. Over time, labels like "vegan" or "plant-based" will fade to the background as we already see happening in cities like London and Amsterdam, leaving only quality, trust, and sustainability. This evolution isn’t about disruption; it’s about progressing pastry step by step toward a better, more inclusive future.