THE SIAL INNOVATION STORY BEHIND UHHMAMI’S RISE
The SIAL Innovation success stories series looks back at the journeys of brands recognised through the competition, spotlighting products that have gone on to shape new conversations across the food industry. These stories show how a moment of visibility at SIAL Paris can become a launchpad for growth, credibility and international dialogue.
When Uhhmami won SIAL Innovation 2022, the Danish brand was still close to its first breakthrough moment. Founded by Michelin-starred chef Frank Lantz, it had entered the market with a deceptively simple proposition: plant-based flavour should not ask people to compromise. Its bouillons, seasonings and cooking kits were designed to bring depth, umami and culinary confidence to everyday meals, using organic, natural and allergen-free ingredients.
The brand’s own language is direct. Uhhmami places taste at the centre, not as a finishing touch but as the condition for any meaningful food transition. The company describes itself as a brand created to make cooking “easy and accessible”, with depth, umami and sustainability at its core. That positioning has helped it move beyond a niche vegan product into a more practical question for the food sector: how can better flavour make sustainable eating feel normal?
A SIAL Innovation effect built on credibility
SIAL Innovation is one of the landmark platforms at SIAL Paris. Located in Hall 6 for the 2026 edition, it is a global observatory of food innovation, designed to help visitors decode market developments, consumer trends and emerging products from around the world . The initiative is run in partnership with Protéines XTC, which has been SIAL’s innovation partner since 1996.
For Uhhmami, the platform delivered more than a trophy. “Winning SIAL Innovation 2022 was a defining moment for Uhhmami,” the brand explains. “It gave us strong international validation and opened doors to conversations we simply wouldn’t have had otherwise. Beyond the award itself, the quality of dialogue with retailers, chefs and food professionals really stood out”.
That distinction matters in a market crowded with claims. Plant-based products have moved through several phases, from imitation meat to cleaner labels, from climate promises to culinary reinvention. Awards do not replace product performance, but they can help buyers and chefs decide where to look. Uhhmami says the award created “immediate credibility and visibility, especially in international markets”, helping position the brand not simply as a new product, but as “a new way of thinking about taste, fermentation and sustainable flavour”.
Taste first, sustainability second but never separate
The logic behind Uhhmami is rooted in the professional kitchen. According to the company, Frank Lantz deconstructed the essence of classic dishes and rebuilt them through plant-based ingredients, creating clean-label bouillons and seasonings that bring restaurant-style flavour into both domestic and professional kitchens. Its range includes bouillons designed to replace traditional stock, as well as taste boosters such as Bacon’ish, Beef’ish, Blue Chee’ish, Chee’ish, Chicken’ish, Ocean’ish, Truffle’ish and Vegetables.
The brand’s success, it says, comes from a “very clear focus: taste first”. Sustainability, in this reading, is not a standalone claim. It works only if people want to come back to the food. Uhhmami’s answer is to combine “deep, umami-rich flavour with clean, natural ingredients and practical solutions that fit into real kitchens”, whether those kitchens serve families at home or customers in foodservice.
This is where the brand’s story becomes relevant beyond plant-based specialists. The challenge for sustainable food is increasingly behavioural, not only technical. Consumers may be willing to try lower-impact products, but repeat adoption depends on price, preparation time, familiarity and sensory satisfaction. Uhhmami’s approach sits precisely at that intersection, treating flavour architecture as infrastructure for change.
From product line to everyday meal platform
Since its SIAL Innovation win, Uhhmami has continued to widen its model. The company says it is evolving “from being a single-product innovation into a broader platform for sustainable everyday meals”, with its Easy Meals range focusing on scalability, simplicity and climate impact while preserving culinary quality.
The Easy Meals concept illustrates this shift. Uhhmami describes the range as kits that can produce a meal for three to four people in around 10 minutes. The products are designed to work with vegetables already available at home, while offering formats such as Bolo, Chili, Goulash, Mexi and Thai. At the centre is upcycled sunflower protein, made from high-oleic sunflower seeds that would otherwise be discarded during oil production. According to Uhhmami, this ingredient provides around 40g of plant-based protein and 18g of fibre per 100g, while helping give meals a hearty texture.
The company also highlights the role of seasonality and waste reduction, encouraging users to add local vegetables or what they already have in the fridge. This gives the product a flexible position between cooking kit, flavour base and sustainability tool. It is not a fully finished meal, nor merely a seasoning. It is closer to a culinary shortcut that still leaves room for the cook.
Returning to the food innovation exhibition
Looking back, Uhhmami says SIAL Paris confirmed an important principle: meaningful innovation is about solving real problems rather than creating novelty for its own sake. “It reinforced our belief that the future of food lies in solutions that combine flavour, sustainability and ease of use,” the brand explains.
That message aligns closely with the role of SIAL Innovation as a food innovation exhibition within a much larger international trade show. For visitors, it acts as a window into products that may soon influence retail shelves, restaurant kitchens, category strategies and consumer expectations. For exhibitors, it can provide a rare combination of visibility, buyer contact and market validation.
Uhhmami is set to return to SIAL Paris 2026, which will take place from 17 to 21 October 2026 at Paris Nord Villepinte. The company also says that it has its eyes set on potential participation in SIAL Innovation 2026.
For a brand born from the idea that sustainable food must first be delicious, the return feels natural. Uhhmami’s journey from award winner to expanding meal platform shows how innovation can travel when it is grounded in practical use.