B.C.-based makers of plant-based alternatives to dairy and meat are riding a wave of enthusiasm for their products by a health- and environment-conscious consumer that has — by nearly every measure — graduated from fringe to mainstream.

The biggest problem that Vancouver’s Daiya Foods faces is meeting the demand on its manufacturing facilities, which are all in the Lower Mainland.

“From day one, we have formulated every single product without any animal-based ingredients,” said co-founder Andre Kroecher. “That has not made it easy, but it is aligned with our values.”

Kroecher and co-founder Greg Blake see themselves as part of a vanguard for the way the world must ultimately feed itself as meat production becomes increasingly unsustainable.

“Animals get their protein from plants, we eat animals for protein. We are really just cutting out the middle man,” said Kroecher. “Eventually we will all have to get our protein from plants.”

It’s an idea he borrowed from a competitor in the plant-based food market, but it’s an approach that seems to be working.

New lines of macaroni and cheese meals and pizzas free of animal products are taking off, vaulting the eight-year-old firm into one of the top manufacturers of dairy alternatives in North America.

Even though dairy and meat alternatives are by their nature processed foods — quite at odds with the natural and unprocessed food movement zeitgeist — both enjoy an aura of healthfulness.

The market for dairy alternatives is projected to grow by more than 13 per cent a year in the United States for several years, according to recent projections by MarketsandMarkets, and recently topped $2 billion in sales. The meat alternative market is projected to exceed $5 billion by 2020.

The western version of meatless eating has come a long way from the days of bland tofu wieners and veggie burgers made from brown rice and yeast.

Richmond-based meat alternative pioneer Gardein has developed a stunning array of plant-based proteins that have the look and texture of familiar meat-based dishes, including satays and holiday roasts.

In fact, grocery store aisles are increasingly populated by faux fish sticks and meatless chicken fingers, not-beef sliders and meatballs constructed without any ingredients derived from animals.

And maybe that makes perfect sense considering beef consumption is down a whopping 28 per cent since the early 2000s. Pork consumption in Canada has dropped by 17.5 per cent in the same period, according to Statistics Canada.

A recent decision by the World Health Organization to label red meat and processed meats a “probable carcinogen” — despite limited and mixed evidence — will likely accelerate the trend.

Soy and nut milks command a growing share of shelf space as per capita dairy consumption enters a third decade of decline in Canada.

Almost 12 million Canadians report reducing or eliminating meat from their diet, with British Columbia boasting the highest proportion of diners who regularly shun meat, according to a poll released this summer, commissioned by the Vancouver Humane Society. Only a fraction of those people identified themselves as vegan or vegetarian.