A new association will represent companies that produce and sell plant-based alternatives to popular meat products.

The Plant Based Foods Association will support the $3.5 billion industry by educating the public and advancing policies to meet what it says is increasing consumer demand for plant-based foods.

"Every other sector of the food industry - from sugar to organics—is represented in the policy arena," Executive Director Michele Simon said. "The time has come for the plant-based food industry to also have a collective voice."

Simon is a San Francisco-based attorney who has been a longtime supporter of the natural food movement and critic of foods containing genetically modified ingredients. The association's Washington, D.C., operations will be led by Elizabeth Kucinich—a GMO food critic and wife of former Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio).

The association's five-member founding board includes executives from The Tofurky Co., Daiya Foods and other plant-based food providers. Eighteen companies have joined the organization as charter members.

The association did not say whether it is a nonprofit.

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