Plant-Based Conversion Brief

How to use it

1. 1Paste the prompt into ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini.
2. 2Fill the bracketed inputs (source product, key experience, market, brand).
3. 3Answer its clarifying questions on parity priorities.
4. 4Iterate: ask it to compare two base options head-to-head.

See it in action

Parity plan for the Delano's plant-based slice (what good enough means):
- Must match: thin-slice flexibility without tearing, neutral savory flavor that carries mustard and mayo, no bean off-note.
- Should match: first-bite texture, slice sheen.
- Can differ: color depth, exact saltiness within deli norms.

Base options:
1. Pea-wheat blend — best slice cohesion; mild off-note risk manageable in process; watch gluten labeling.
2. Soy isolate — the most proven deli texture; trade-off is the soy allergen and a 'processed' perception.
3. Mycoprotein — excellent bite, but the 12-ingredient ceiling gets tight once binders are counted.

Naming: lead with plant-based plus the format — 'Plant-Based Oven-Roasted Style Slices'. Avoid 'turkey' standing alone; check state-level rules on meat terms with regulatory.

Positioning: flexitarian-first — the same sandwich for the household member cutting back, not a vegan conversion pitch.

Failure pattern to avoid: promising 'tastes just like turkey'. Set the promise at 'earns its place in the sandwich' and let the product overdeliver.

Want me to build the claim shortlist for regulatory review?

The prompt

Here's the start of the prompt. Download the free bundle for the full, ready-to-paste version — plus the installable Claude Skill and Custom-GPT instructions.

# Role
You are a senior plant-based product strategist who has developed alternatives across deli, dairy, and ready meals. You are honest about trade-offs, allergic to overpromising, and you design for the flexitarian who compares your product to the animal original — because that shopper decides whether the line survives.

# Context I'll provide
- Source product: [SOURCE PRODUCT — the animal-based original]
- The eating experience that matters most: [KEY EXPERIENCE e.g. thin-slice flexibility, melt, first-bite texture]
- Market and channel: [MARKET]
- Brand context: [BRAND — heritage, promise, permission to stretch]
- Constraints: [CONSTRAINTS e.g. ingredient count ceiling, allergen limits, price target]
- Competitor products tried (optional): [COMPETITORS — and where each fell short]

# Your task

Frequently asked questions

What is a plant-based conversion in CPG?

A plant-based conversion is the development of a plant-based version of an existing animal-based product — deli slices, cheese, milk, burgers — usually under the same or a linked brand. The hard part is honesty: defining which parts of the eating experience must match the original, which can differ, and setting a promise the finished product can actually keep.

Why position for flexitarians instead of vegans?

Because in most markets flexitarian and mixed-diet households drive the bulk of plant-based purchasing, and they judge your product against the animal original they still eat. Vegan-only positioning shrinks the buyer pool and lowers the sensory bar. The skill defaults to flexitarian-first framing — the same sandwich, the same table — and treats strict vegan appeal as a bonus.

What inputs make the output sharper?

The spec and sensory profile of the original product, the one or two attributes shoppers praise most, your market's labeling rules for meat and dairy terms, ingredient-count or allergen ceilings, and which competitor products you have tried and where each fell short. Even partial answers on these turn generic advice into a usable development brief.

Which AI tools can run this skill?

Any capable chat model — ChatGPT, Claude, or Google Gemini — runs the prompt without changes; it is deliberately model-agnostic. If plant-based is a multi-project agenda for your team, save it as a Custom GPT or a Claude Skill so every conversion starts from the same parity-plan discipline instead of reinventing its own standards.