Driven by the restaurants and corporate catering, foodservice sales of plant-based meat and dairy in the Netherlands grew by 111% and 82%, respectively, in the past two years.
In 2023, the number of meat analogues sold in Dutch foodservice channels was double the amount two years prior, just as conventional meat saw volume sales decline by 2%, according to Foodstep data analysed by ProVeg Netherlands.
Between 2021 and 2023, the volume sales of plant-based meat grew by 111%, on the back of sustained popularity in restaurants and corporate catering. Dairy alternatives, meanwhile, saw unit sales increase by 82% in the same period.
These new figures mean vegan analogues accounted for 4.3% of the overall meat market and 7.4% of the dairy sector – for the first time, the share of these products in foodservice is higher than in the retail sector.
When looking at the data longer term, the volume sales of conventional dairy have shrunk sharply, according to ProVeg Netherlands. The organisation suggests the segment never recovered from the foodservice dip experienced by the entire industry during the Covid-19 lockdowns, which saw many restaurants close both temporarily and permanently. Sales of these products have only reached 78% of pre-lockdown levels.
On the other hand, plant-based dairy has become more popular. Milk alternatives alone saw a 92% rise, and their popularity in the quick-service sector was thanks to the 123% hike in volume sales of plant-based barista milks. These products made up two-thirds (68%) of all ‘frothable’ milk sold in sandwich shops, snack bars and cafés.
But there is a caveat – most QSRs and coffee shops use whole milk instead of specially crafted barista milk. So when accounting for this, nearly 20% of milk used in this foodservice segment is plant-based. And this is dominated by oat milk, which is responsible for 12% of the share.
Meanwhile, margarine and butter alternatives saw a smaller growth of 7% between 2021 and 2023, but already account for 63% of the market. Vegan cheese and ice cream, however, has a long way to go: despite volume sales rising by 113% and 227%, respectively, these products still only make up 0.9% and 0.4% of cheese and ice cream sold to the foodservice sector in the Netherlands.
The largest growth for plant-based products in this period came from the cooking cream segment. Accounting for 12% of the overall market, volume sales of vegan cooking cream skyrocketed by 320%. The volume share of these products is even larger in the education (37%) and corporate catering (21%) sectors.
“Most products still have a long way to go. But plant-based cooking cream is already well on its way to becoming just as ubiquitous a plant-based basic product in catering as margarine,” said Martine van Haperen, foodservice expert at ProVeg Netherlands.
Caterers turn to exclusively plant-based options
Courtesy: The Vegetarian Butcher
When it comes to plant-based meat, bitterballen (Dutch croquettes) have witnessed the biggest rise (201%) between 2021 and 2023, while croquettes have grown by 50% in volume sales. The market share for meat analogues is highest in the education sector (9.5%) – here, vegan versions account for 22% of all bitterballen sold.
Likewise, traditional plant proteins have become more popular too, with legumes growing by 33% in Dutch foodservice. Lentils (69%) saw the biggest rise, followed by chickpeas (67%) and other beans (25%).
Vegan mayo and fries sauce represent another food group with explosive growth, with sales up by 244% and accounting for 3.5% of the overall market. In corporate catering, though, their share is already at 8%.
“What these products have in common is the high one-on-one replaceability with the animal alternative,” explained van Haperen. “More and more caterers only offer vegetable cream, mayonnaise or bitterballen. That is much easier and more environmentally friendly than offering animal and vegetable options separately, especially because the consumer hardly tastes the difference.
She added that the high volumes can be attributed to the strict sustainability targets of Dutch foodservice companies – 16 caterers have committed to have at least 60% of all proteins sold be plant-based by 2030, an effort led by animal rights group Wakker Dier. These include Van Leeuwen Catering, Vermaat Groep, Albron, Hutten and Compass Group.
Driven by the restaurants and corporate catering, foodservice sales of plant-based meat and dairy in the Netherlands grew by 111% and 82%, respectively, in the past two years.
In 2023, the number of meat analogues sold in Dutch foodservice channels was double the amount two years prior, just as conventional meat saw volume sales decline by 2%, according to Foodstep data analysed by ProVeg Netherlands.
Between 2021 and 2023, the volume sales of plant-based meat grew by 111%, on the back of sustained popularity in restaurants and corporate catering. Dairy alternatives, meanwhile, saw unit sales increase by 82% in the same period.
These new figures mean vegan analogues accounted for 4.3% of the overall meat market and 7.4% of the dairy sector – for the first time, the share of these products in foodservice is higher than in the retail sector.
When looking at the data longer term, the volume sales of conventional dairy have shrunk sharply, according to ProVeg Netherlands. The organisation suggests the segment never recovered from the foodservice dip experienced by the entire industry during the Covid-19 lockdowns, which saw many restaurants close both temporarily and permanently. Sales of these products have only reached 78% of pre-lockdown levels.
On the other hand, plant-based dairy has become more popular. Milk alternatives alone saw a 92% rise, and their popularity in the quick-service sector was thanks to the 123% hike in volume sales of plant-based barista milks. These products made up two-thirds (68%) of all ‘frothable’ milk sold in sandwich shops, snack bars and cafés.
But there is a caveat – most QSRs and coffee shops use whole milk instead of specially crafted barista milk. So when accounting for this, nearly 20% of milk used in this foodservice segment is plant-based. And this is dominated by oat milk, which is responsible for 12% of the share.
Meanwhile, margarine and butter alternatives saw a smaller growth of 7% between 2021 and 2023, but already account for 63% of the market. Vegan cheese and ice cream, however, has a long way to go: despite volume sales rising by 113% and 227%, respectively, these products still only make up 0.9% and 0.4% of cheese and ice cream sold to the foodservice sector in the Netherlands.
The largest growth for plant-based products in this period came from the cooking cream segment. Accounting for 12% of the overall market, volume sales of vegan cooking cream skyrocketed by 320%. The volume share of these products is even larger in the education (37%) and corporate catering (21%) sectors.
“Most products still have a long way to go. But plant-based cooking cream is already well on its way to becoming just as ubiquitous a plant-based basic product in catering as margarine,” said Martine van Haperen, foodservice expert at ProVeg Netherlands.
Caterers turn to exclusively plant-based options
Courtesy: The Vegetarian Butcher
When it comes to plant-based meat, bitterballen (Dutch croquettes) have witnessed the biggest rise (201%) between 2021 and 2023, while croquettes have grown by 50% in volume sales. The market share for meat analogues is highest in the education sector (9.5%) – here, vegan versions account for 22% of all bitterballen sold.
Likewise, traditional plant proteins have become more popular too, with legumes growing by 33% in Dutch foodservice. Lentils (69%) saw the biggest rise, followed by chickpeas (67%) and other beans (25%).
Vegan mayo and fries sauce represent another food group with explosive growth, with sales up by 244% and accounting for 3.5% of the overall market. In corporate catering, though, their share is already at 8%.
“What these products have in common is the high one-on-one replaceability with the animal alternative,” explained van Haperen. “More and more caterers only offer vegetable cream, mayonnaise or bitterballen. That is much easier and more environmentally friendly than offering animal and vegetable options separately, especially because the consumer hardly tastes the difference.
She added that the high volumes can be attributed to the strict sustainability targets of Dutch foodservice companies – 16 caterers have committed to have at least 60% of all proteins sold be plant-based by 2030, an effort led by animal rights group Wakker Dier. These include Van Leeuwen Catering, Vermaat Groep, Albron, Hutten and Compass Group.
And this week, industry members got a taste of three new dishes using a new kind of ingredient for hybrid meats (a combination of cultivated animal cells and plant-based ingredients).
Local startup Ants Innovate showcased Cell Essence, a cultivated pork oil for hybrid meats, as part of three dishes at a private tasting. It is part of the company’s line of functional ingredients for the alternative protein industry, and was mixed with products from its plant-based meat brand NouMi.
The cultivated porcine oil was part of IKEA-style meatballs, Shanghai-style soup dumplings (xiaolongbao), and teriyaki grilled skewers. The latter featured another of Ants Innovate’s functional ingredients, a lean meat cut using its Scalable Micro-Imprinted Lapis Expansion (or SMILE) tech.
A few drops are all that’s needed
Courtesy: GFI APAC/LInkedIn
Ants Innovate is an alumnus of the state-owned Agency for Science, Technology, and Research (A*STAR), and was founded by Hanry Yu and Ong Shuian in 2020. The startup calls itself an “industry enabler and a translator of technology to products”, and aims to supply functional ingredients for cultivated and plant-based protein manufacturers to make premium whole-cut meats.
The company is working on a range of fictional hybrid meat ingredients to hit the taste, texture and affordability touchpoints, which includes a scaleable micro-imprinting and stacking technology for planet-friendly meat cuts, as explained by the Good Food Institute APAC, whose director Mirte Gosker was at the tasting event.
Cell Essence is described as an ingredient that “emulates the rich, savoury essence of pork”, and has a major impact on the sensory aspects of hybrid meats even in small concentrations. The technology extracts these attributes from animal cells and helps the startup “control the meaty aroma, fibrous base or natural meaty colouring” of the products.
“This is a hybrid cultivated porcine oil that emulates the rich, savoury essence of pork,” explained Calisa Lim, senior project manager at trade body APAC-SCA, who was also at the event. Writing on LinkedIn, she said she was particularly “blown away by the smell and taste” of the meat skewers.
“The small percentage of cells (<3%) was enough to deliver on the sweet, salty and umami flavour that conventional pork has,” wrote Lim.
The commercial potential of hybrid meat
Courtesy: Ants Innovate
Ants Innovate is among several startups working on cultivated meat ingredients. Silicon Valley startup Mission Barns is making cultivated pork fat, Dutch player Upstream Foods is working on cultivated salmon fat, and fellow Singaporean company ImpacFat is developing cultivated fish fat. South Korea’s Simple Planet, meanwhile, has created a cultivated meat powder.
Ants Innovate – whose name takes inspiration from the Ants and Lions story – has an automaton instrument that uses process and design engineering to seamlessly transform ingredients like Cell Essence into end products. It has established various cell lines and opened a lab and pilot plant at Bedok Food City.
It launched NouMi in 2022, offering plant-based meat products in the form of baos, spring rolls, curry puffs and dumplings. It has also been working with strategic partners in supply chain and distribution to commercialise its functional ingredients.
Most cultivated meats that have been sold so far are hybrid meats, as the industry continues to scale and lower costs. “The chances of being able to economically produce 100% cultivated products that can compete on price with commoditised meat are slim to none in the next 10+ years,” Heather Courtney, general partner at Alwyn Capital, told Green Queen in December.
“in the short term, it’s likely the only way to make cultivated commercially feasible,” she added. “Hybrid products will allow the cultivated market the chance to build and become normalised with consumers, while also – importantly – generating the revenues and business necessary to keep dollars flowing into the space, so scale can be further achieved.”
Ants Innovate addresses the cost question on its website, saying: “We have low cost as a key design goal and have simplified the manufacturing process and ingredient list, as well as the cell and food production strategies. We use cells for their meaty flavours so our premium quality products will be priced competitively with conventional meat.”
The world’s top food delivery services are failing to implement strategies to reduce meat and dairy consumption, despite the climate emergency.
Despite an uptick in vegan food options, most food delivery apps promote these meals temporarily, and lack long-term, concrete strategies for reducing animal-derived foods, a study has found.
Animal rights organisation Four Paws analysed 18 food delivery services in Europe, the US and South Africa to rank their climate, meat and dairy reduction goals, animal welfare policies, and vegan food offerings. These companies were found to be lacking in their efforts to curb meat and dairy consumption, despite these foods making up 57% of global agricultural emissions.
Only three have raised the topic of animals: Thuisbezorgd (the Dutch subsidiary of Just Eat) mentioned welfare in a blog post in connection to people’s shifts to plant-based; Just Eat Switzerlad referred to animal husbandry in its trends report for 2022; and Deliveroo mentioned animal health in a materiality matrix in its 2023 report.
But none of them have any policies to protect animal welfare. “Food delivery services really need to start delivering on animal welfare. When ordering out, it makes a big difference for animal welfare and the climate, whether you choose a meat burger or a vegan pizza,” says Sonja Svensek, head of nutrition at Four Paws.
“This is why it is so essential that food delivery services support their partnering restaurants and consumers in making animal-friendly choices,” she adds.
Just Eat Takeaway.com leads climate goals, but they’re still poor
Courtesy: Four Paws
The 18 services are subsidiaries of five major global food delivery services: Deliveroo, Delivery Hero, DoorDash/Wolt, Just Eat Takeaway.com, and Uber Eats.
The research found that Just Eat Switzerland topped the ranking with 32 points out of 100, followed by the brand’s UK operation, which scored 27 – although this overall rank was still classed as ‘poor’. Both showed equally positive initiatives towards meat and dairy reduction and climate goals, however, earning 16 points of 40 for this category.
Four Paws revealed that several leading companies have made references to the negative environmental effects of animal proteins in their annual reports or by developing concrete initiatives. Just Eat Takeaway.com, for example, acknowledged that “animal-based products have on average higher emissions per kg of product compared to plant-based products” in its 2022 emissions report submitted to the Carbon Disclosure Project.
Its UK and Swiss subsidiaries have worked with carbon calculator startup My Emissions to access the climate footprint of meals, enabling restaurants to understand how sustainable their dishes are, and allowing consumers to make more planet-friendly choices.
Just Eat UK also provided sustainability guides to partners, addressing the impact of animal-based foods, as well as topics like sustainable packaging and green operations. Its German and Austrian subsidiaries, under the brand name Lieferando, further highlighted the livestock-climate connection in either their reports or on their websites.
However, it’s unclear whether Just Eat Takeaway.com’s carbon labelling schemes and restaurant sustainability guides will extend to other geographies too.
Meanwhile, Deliveroo’s annual report for 2023 – which recognised beef as the highest polluting food – had a section on a hypothetical meat tax. If such a levy were to be imposed, the company said it would advise restaurants and grocers to promote plant-based products and dishes.
“Although this was only a risk mitigation strategy to avoid costs being passed on to the consumer rather than a self-motivated climate strategy, it is positive to see that Deliveroo was aware of the emissions problem of beef and saw plant-based dishes as a solution,” Four Paws states in the report.
How food delivery companies fare on vegan food
Courtesy: Just Eat for Business
Just Eat Switzerland came out on top in terms of the availability of plant-based food, scoring 14 out of 20 points. This was followed by the company’s subsidiaries in the UK, the Netherlands (Thuisbezorgd), and Germany (Lieferando).
Postmates US and Uber Eats Netherlands scored the lowest on this metric (one point), and also overall, since this was their only point across the ranking.
Of the 18 services, 11 mentioned increasing vegan offerings. But only Just Eat UK, Switzerland, Lieferando in Germany and Austria, Thuisbezorgd and Deliveroo had “vague plans” to up the availability of vegan food on a temporary basis.
Just Eat Takeaway.com developed a Veganuary initiative to inspire consumers about meat-free dishes across 15 markets (although it’s not clear if GrubHub was part of the initiative). Its local efforts include partnerships with Planted and Garden Gourmet and 20% discounts on plant-based orders during Veganuary in Switzerland, plus awards for best vegetarian/vegan restaurants in Germany and Austria.
Similarly, Deliveroo launched limited-edition special dishes for Vegan-ooo-ary in the UK. Meanwhile, Uber Eats Germany offered a 20% discount on vegan dishes on Earth Day, and posts regularly about plant-based food on social media, unlike its operations in other countries.
Four Paws has sent a commitment letter to each of the 18 food delivery companies, outlining goals across the three categories to be achieved by 2028. These include implementing a meat and dairy reduction goal (without compensating these with other animal proteins), phasing out factory-farmed products, and ramping up vegan food options and in-app promotions on these.
“With the sector booming, it is high time these companies are living up to their responsibility to protect animal welfare and the climate, which should be reflected within their CSR policies,” says Svensek. “Delivery services can raise awareness about the importance of a plant-based diet promoting vegan dishes more visibly on their ordering platforms.”
In our weekly column, we round up the latest news and developments in the alternative protein and sustainable food industry. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers Chloe Coscarelli’s comeback to the restaurant world, vegan hits at UK airports, and Canada’s plant-based egg labelling guidelines.
New products and launches
Vegan chef Chloe Coscarelli has opened eponymous restaurant Chloe on New York City’s Bleecker Street (to rave reviews), eight years after she was ousted from her first restaurant chain, By Chloe.
Courtesy: Chloe
On the other coast, vegan seafood company Impact Food served its sushi-grade tuna in nachos and a rice bowl by the Da Poke Man food truck at the Outside Lands music festival last weekend.
If you’re a fan of the adult party game Cards Against Humanity, vegan gaming company This Is Not A Game has released a vegan-focused version called Plants Against Veganity. There’s apparently a Monopoly-style game in the works too.
Courtesy: This Is Not A Game
Israeli alt-seafood player Oshi has partnered with Lewis Hamilton-backed vegan chain Neat, which has added three dishes using the former’s vegan salmon. It comes shortly after the startup relocated production to California, spotting a bigger market for its vegan fish in the US.
US airline JetBlue has launched Lakeland Dairies‘ Milk in a Stick Oat Milk, a plant-based creamer for the in-flight Dunkin’ coffee and tea offerings.
Alt-dairy giant Califia Farms has announced its fall and winter lineups: the former features pumpkin spice barista oat milk, caramel apple crumble oat creamer, and maple waffle almond creamer; and the latter has a holiday blend black iced coffee, holiday nog, and peppermint mocha almond latte. These and other flavours are rolling out across grocery stores now.
Courtesy: Califia Farms
Blue Zones Kitchen – the company based on the world’s blue zones highlighted in Netflix’s Live to 100 – has rolled out its debut breakfast product line. The vegan, gluten-free, steel-cut oatmeal SKUs come in blueberry-walnut and peach-pecan flavours, and can be found at Whole Foods stores nationwide.
Fast-casual chain Veggie Grill has debuted its largest menu update since being acquired by Next Level Burger in January. New items include quinoa-mushroom burgers, crispy chicken sandwiches, and an avocado Cobb salad with tempeh bacon.
Courtesy: Veggie Grill
In the UK, VBites owner Heather Mills is sponsoring The Big Green Clash, an eco-focused rugby match between Richmond Rugby Club and the all-vegan Green Gazelles Rugby Club at London’s Richmond Athletic Ground on September 8.
Meanwhile, bottled oat milk maker Oato has launched a Caffè Latte variant exclusively for British milk round Modern Milkman, with notes of caramel and vanilla, 7g of sugar per 100ml, and a price tag of £1.50 per pint.
Courtesy: Oato
And restaurant chain Wagamama, which aims to make half its menu plant-based by 2025, has introduced a vegan brunch menu at 22 locations across the UK. A national rollout will follow soon.
Financial updates
Australian precision fermentation startup Cauldron has been awarded an A$4.3M ($2.8M) grant by the Department of Industry, Science and Resources Industry Growth Program to scale up its manufacturing platform for high-value ingredients.
Brazilian mycoprotein producerTypcal has received R$250,000 ($45,000) in grant funding from the government’s Paraná Anjo Inovador programme.
Courtesy: Typcal
In South Korea, meat-producer-turned-vegan-startup Sujis Link has secured a ₩3B ($2.5M) investment from Samyang Foods, as part of a collaboration to advance the country’s plant-based sector.
Since last summer, sales of vegan breakfasts and brunches have hiked by over 20% at Manchester, Stansted and East Midlands airports in the UK.
Policy and research developments
In Chile, the agricultural committee has passed a bill that would see plant-based meat, dairy and egg products as “simulated food”. The proposed legislation is now being debated in the Chamber of Deputies.
Canada is developing guidance on the labelling of plant-based egg products, in what it says is an effort to help companies avoid being ‘misleading’ and comply with regulations. The proposed guidance is predictable.
Courtesy: Veronika Dvorakova
Speaking of Canada, cellular agriculture platform Cult Food Science‘s subsidiary Further Foods has submitted a design protocol for feeding trials of its cultivated pet food, which it aims to launch under its Noochies! brand. As we reported last month, the goal is to receive US regulatory approval and sell cultivated chicken in early 2025.
University of Georgia startup CytoNest has introduced an edible 3D fibre scaffold for cultivated meat and seafood, which is made from Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) materials.
Courtesy: Lauren Corcino
Finally, in the UK, West Yorkshire’s Calderdale Council is the latest to go vegan, having approved the proposal to only serve plant-based food at future meetings and catered events.
California’s Upside Foods has filed a lawsuit against the state of Florida over its ban on cultivated meat, and is asking the federal court for an injunction. Here’s what happened, and what’s to come.
Forty-two days after Florida decided to outlaw the sale and production of cultivated meat, the state is now facing a lawsuit over the ban.
Californian cultivated chicken startup Upside Foods has filed a legal complaint in the US District Court for the Northern District of Florida, calling Florida’s SB 1084 “unconstitutional”.
Announced on May 1 by governor Ron DeSantis, the legislation made it a second-degree misdemeanour to manufacture, transport, commercialise or sell cultivated meat within Florida’s borders. Penalties included up to $5,000 in fines, 60 days in jail, and businesses having their licenses revoked.
“What we’re protecting here is the industry against acts of man, against an ideological agenda that wants to finger agriculture as the problem, that views things like raising cattle as destroying our climate,” DeSantis said at the time, labelling it a battle against “the global elite’s plan to force the world to eat meat grown in a petri dish or bugs to achieve their authoritarian goals”.
But Paul Sherman, senior attorney at the Institute of Justice, which is leading the case for Upside Foods, said the ban had “nothing to do with protecting public health and safety”. “Florida’s law is a transparent example of economic protectionism. It was passed following intense lobbying by cattle interests, and its protectionist purpose was no secret,” he said in a press conference.
So what are the grounds for Upside Foods’ lawsuit? And what happens next? Here’s everything you need to know.
Why Upside Foods is challenging Florida’s ban
As one of two companies approved to sell cultivated meat in the US, Upside Foods has been offering Americans a taste of its chicken for over a year now. What started as a residency on the menu of Dominique Crenn’s Bar Crenn has since evolved into tastings at various public events throughout the US.
These included the Industry Only Potluck in Las Vegas, TED Countdown Dilemma: Food in New York, and South by Southwest (SXSW) in Texas. In fact, four days before Florida’s ban, the startup hosted a Freedom of Food Pop-Up in Miami, in partnership with local chef Mika Leon.
But this wasn’t the only event Upside Foods was planning in Florida. It had teamed up with local chefs to showcase its cultivated chicken at the Art Basel fair in Miami in December, and host a tasting at the South Beach Wine and Food Festival in the state capital next February.
The chef who was working on the Art Basel activation had also planned to offer the cultivated chicken at her restaurant, aiming to make it available to diners on a limited basis by the first quarter of 2025. Upside Foods had additionally identified chefs in Miami and Tallahassee who were interested in collaborating with the brand.
Courtesy: Kevin Martin Galante/Upside Foods
“Florida is the third-largest economy in the US, which is why every CPG sees Florida as an important market,” Sean Edgett, chief legal officer at Upside Foods, tells Green Queen. “We know that ‘tasting is believing’ – giving consumers in every market the opportunity to try our product is hugely important to our future.”
He adds: “We had great feedback from our June 2023 Miami pop-up with Chef Mika Leon and hope to be able to continue that partnership in the future. However, for now, all plans for Florida are on hold.”
“Under the ban, tasting events like these are a crime. If Upside were to distribute its product in Florida, it would expose itself and the local chefs and food establishments with which it wishes to partner to civil and criminal penalties as well as the embargo and destruction of its products,” the complaint reads.
Upside Foods argues that the ban blocked “critical and irreplaceable opportunities” to grow the nascent cultivated meat market: “Upside is enduring ongoing harm in the form of lost revenue, missed business and promotional opportunities, reputational damage, and loss of consumer goodwill.”
The legislation also makes it harder for the startup to partner with restaurant groups. “Florida is the headquarters of the world’s largest full-service restaurant company [Darden Restaurants] and one of the largest quick-service restaurants in the country [Burger King], both of which are key long-term customer targets of Upside’s,” the plaintiff notes.
What makes Florida’s ban unconstitutional?
Courtesy: UPSIDE Foods/Canva AI/Green Queen
The Institute of Justice has invoked two provisions of the US Constitution: the Commerce Clause and the Supremacy Clause.
Under the Commerce Clause, the federal government has exclusive power to regulate interstate commerce. States have limited power to interfere with or discriminate against here. “Florida’s ban does just that,” argues Institute of Justice attorney Suranjan Sen, also counsel to Upside Foods.
The state violates the Commerce Clause because its “intended purpose and practical effect is to shield in-state commercial interests from interstate competition”, he explains.
“Floridians have the right to enjoy a free-flowing market of interstate goods and services; they have a right to make an informed choice as to whether these products are right for themselves and their families; and Florida cannot shield itself from the interstate market without good reason,” Sen tells Green Queen.
“There is no such good reason here, in part because these products are safe to eat, and they are heavily regulated and inspected by the USDA and FDA – just like conventional meat.”
And the decision by two federal departments to allow Upside Foods to sell products in the interstate market supersedes any contrary state laws, as outlined in the Supremacy Clause.
“Congress long ago passed the Federal Meat Inspection Act and the Poultry Products Inspection Act, which grant the USDA and FDA the authority to set up a nationwide regulatory regime for meat products, a regime that expressly preempts state laws to the contrary (because 50 different regulatory regimes would frustrate a nationwide market),” explains Sen.
Introducing different ingredient or manufacturing requirements is therefore prevented by these acts. “Essentially, the federal government has said that cultivated chicken cells produced at Upside’s facilities can be used in poultry products, and the state of Florida is saying that they can’t. The state simply doesn’t have that power,” Sherman added in the press conference.
Who are the defendants?
Courtesy: Upside Foods
The defendants in the lawsuit are Florida agriculture commissioner Wilton Simpson, attorney general Ashley Moody, as well as state attorneys Jack Campbell (from the Second Judicial Circuit), Bruce Bartlett (Sixth Judicial Circuit), Andrew Bain (Ninth Judicial Circuit), and Katherine Fernandez Rundle (Eleventh Judicial Circuit).
“The lawsuit is ridiculous,” Simpson said in a statement. “Lab-grown ‘meat’ is not proven to be safe enough for consumers and it is being pushed by a liberal agenda to shut down farms. Food security is a matter of national security, and our farmers are the first line of defence.”
He added: “As Florida’s Commissioner of Agriculture, I will fight every day to protect a safe, affordable, and abundant food supply. States are the laboratory of democracy, and Florida has the right to not be a corporate guinea pig. Leave the Frankenmeat experiment to California.”
“The states simply do not have the power to wall themselves off from products that have been approved by the USDA and the FDA,” Sherman said when asked to respond to Simpson’s comments. “And if consumers don’t like the idea of cultivated meat, there’s a simple solution. They don’t have to eat it, but they can’t make that decision for other consumers.”
Uma Valeti, co-founder and CEO of Upside Foods, stressed that cultivated meat is a “complement, not competition” to conventional meat. The current methods of meat production are unsustainable – there’s simply not enough land, water or resources to meet the needs of a 10-billion-strong population.
“What cultivated meat is doing is putting choice of having animal-based foods on the table and not having to ration in the future,” Valeti said.
Miami chef Mika Leon and Upside Foods CEO Uma Valeti at the Freedom of Food tasting event in June | Courtesy: Kevin Martin Galante/Upside Foods
Recalling the legislative debate that led to the ban, he said it was a “very surreal moment”, likening it to what the world looked like hundreds of years ago, when people challenged “nearly every transformative innovation that came into the world, and innovators had to fight and fight and fight”.
“I felt like I was watching an old boys’ club trying to have a privileged group protected and protecting an incumbent industry. I just couldn’t believe that was happening at this day and age.”
Are there any legal precedents for Upside Foods’ case?
Yes, there are. In 2011’s National Meat Association v Harris, the US Supreme Court unanimously invoked the Supremacy Clause to strike down a California law aiming to restrict meatpackers and processors from handling nonambulatory pigs (who can’t bear weight on their legs or walk without support).
This legislation was found to be “exceeding or conflicting with requirements under the Federal Meat Inspection Act”, notes Sen.
Meanwhile, in 1977’s Hunt v Washington State Apple Advertising Commission, the Supreme Court invoked the Commerce Clause to abolish a North Carolina legislation that required apples to be sold with no grade identification other than USDA grading.
While neutral on the surface, this law “operated to disfavour apples from other states” that could boast grades higher than the UDSA grades.
Courtesy: Upside Foods
What about Alabama’s ban, and what happens next?
The Institute of Justice is asking the court to declare that Florida’s ban violates the constitutional clauses, and grant an injunction preventing the state from enforcing it.
While the lawsuit moves forward, the Institute of Justice will be filing for a preliminary injunction to allow Upside Foods to continue to sell its cultivated chicken in Florida. “The rules state that we must first confer with Florida’s attorneys, which we hope to do this week,” says Sen.
“Once we file that motion, the timeline will largely be in the judge’s hands. That said, the immediate impetus for the preliminary injunction would be so that Upside can host a tasting event in Miami this December at the Art Basel festival, so hopefully we should get a result by then,” he adds.
Just a week after Florida’s ban in May, neighbouring state Alabama also decided to outlaw cultivated meat, but this comes into effect on October 1. According to the legal filing, “officials in Arizona, Kentucky, Iowa, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia” have also introduced similar proposals.
“We see these types of bans as a harbinger of what might come when a small set of people try to make laws and rules on what common Americans and Floridians can eat,” said Upside Foods’ Valeti.
Courtesy: Upside Foods
“Alabama’s ban is similarly unlawful, as are other efforts to kill a new and innovative industry for the sake of shielding entrenched in-state commercial interests,” says Sen. Since Florida’s law is already in place, the lawyers decided to challenge this first. But he says the Institute of Justice is “not averse to challenging other bans”.
He adds: “Alabama is in the same federal circuit court of appeals as Florida (the Eleventh Circuit). Therefore, the precedent from a victory in this case would likely apply to Alabama as well.”
Upside Foods is among the most well-capitalised startups in the cultivated meat sector, having raised $608M to date. But a lack of investment in the overall industry and two rounds of layoffs in 2024, combined with these legislative challenges, have dented progress.
However, while it has paused its plans for tastings in Florida for now, the company is planning on distributing its cultivated chicken at events in Los Angeles and Chicago next month.
A 50% shift to alternative proteins in the US would make land use much more efficient, alongside biodiversity and carbon sequestration gains for the Midwest and South.
If Americans switch half their meat, dairy and egg intake to alternative proteins, the country would see land nearly the size of South Dakota be freed up. What’s more – the Midwest and South regions can become better carbon sinks, while restoring many threatened ecosystems.
That’s the consensus of a new report exploring the land use benefits of alternative proteins. Authored by the Good Food Institute (GFI) and Highland Economics, Transforming Land Use focuses on US cropland demand to meet current protein consumption, and quantifies how the US can get closer to its biodiversity and climate goals by focusing on proteins that require much less land than animals.
In the US, 42% of land is used for grazing livestock. And of the 21% that is cropland, more than three-quarters is dedicated to crops primarily supporting livestock production. Meanwhile, alternative proteins require 50-90% less land on average than animal proteins per protein – and yes, that includes poultry and eggs too.
Courtesy: GFI
But if the US substituted 50% of animal products for alternative proteins, the report finds that 47.3 million acres of cropland would no longer be needed to produce food. Americans collectively eat eight billion kgs of animal protein per year, so cutting that in half would eliminate the need for 32 million acres of forage and 31.5 million acres of feed crops.
However, the report doesn’t include the land restoration benefits linked with rangelands (where the native vegetation is grass) for grazing livestock, using cropland for biofuels or animal feed exports, water use, and other environmental impacts like greenhouse gas emissions. This means that these benefits – purely for land use – are conservative estimates of the true prospects of alternative protein.
How alternative proteins can change America’s landscape
Freeing up all this land would enable the large-scale restoration of the US’s threatened ecosystems. Of the 485 ecosystems in the country, 45% are currently vulnerable or endangered.
The researchers identified the ecosystems present before the land was converted into feed crops and forage cropland, and can survive in the future with restoration. The proposed shift to alternative proteins was found to have the potential to restore 64% of these threatened ecosystems.
Since the South and the Midwest are home to a significant percentage of feed crops and forage cropland in the US, they have a high number of threatened ecosystems. The Midwest would have the opportunity to restore 84% of its feed crop area (higher than anywhere else in the US), while the South has the greatest opportunities for ecosystem restoration
Courtesy: GFI
The US National Climate Task Force has set a goal of conserving 30% of national land and waters by 2030, and shifting to 50% alternative proteins alone would help restore 13% of the area in this target.
Meanwhile, the restored natural area available from the protein transition would sequester 178 million tonnes of CO2e annually – that’s more than the combined emissions of all domestic flights in the US in 2021. This would mean a 22% increase in the average net national carbon sink associated with land use and forestry. Here, too, the South and Midwest present the greatest carbon sequestration opportunities, at 48% and 33%, respectively.
US government must increase policy support for smart proteins
On a global level, agriculture, forestry and other land uses account for up to 24% of all emissions. Livestock and feed production, meanwhile, have made up 65% of global agricultural land use change in the last 50 years, according to separate research, which said dietary shifts towards more animal-sourced and ultra-processed foods are putting a major strain on land, with factory farming and forest clearance closely associated with animal agriculture.
Climate scientists have suggested that land use alone represents a quarter of the world’s emissions mitigation potential between now and 2050.
And research by Our World in Data has found that beef, sheep, goat and buffalo meats have the greatest carbon opportunity costs per kg – which refers to the land that could be used to restore native vegetation and sequester carbon if a foodstuff wasn’t being grown on it.
Courtesy: GFI
The GFI report makes several recommendations for NGOs and governments to enable a transition to alternative proteins. Non-profits should push governments to back R&D and commercialisation efforts for smart proteins; analyse the socioeconomic impacts of a shift to these foods, and advocate for policies that add revenue streams for farmers; as well as expand land use efficiency benefits across borders.
As for policymakers, they must increase investment into alternative protein research to enhance their taste, texture, price, nutrition, and production capabilities. Governments are urged to promote the scaling up of biomanufacturing, new equitable workforce opportunities, and regional diversity. Additionally, public policies that support farmers and boost new markets for locally produced alternative protein crops are crucial.
“To reach [the US’s] ambitious 2030 and 2050 targets for climate change mitigation and land conservation and restoration, diversifying our protein supply is essential,” the report reads. “More policy support will be necessary to create appealing alternative protein products, scale their production, and provide them at an affordable price to the public.”
Building on its impressive foodservice record, Impossible Foods will open its first pop-up restaurant in Chicago, showcasing its plant-based meat products across a range of dishes.
Impossible Foods is opening a new pop-up restaurant in Chicago’s XMarket Food Hall tomorrow, a first for the plant-based meat maker.
Titled Impossible Quality Meats, the foodservice concept will spotlight the company’s vegan beef, chicken and pork products in a variety of dishes. The idea is to call attention to its expansive foodservice footprint (it is available in over 45,000 locations in the US alone) and showcase the versatility of its plant-based meat range, which has now been on the market for eight years.
“Impossible began as a foodservice brand, launching our flagship beef product in 2016 with some of the best restaurants in America,” said Impossible Foods CEO Peter McGuinness. “It’s been a natural evolution for us to create our own branded dining experience to showcase our delicious food.”
What’s on the many at the Impossible Quality Meats pop-up?
Courtesy: Impossible Foods
Impossible Quality Meats will be open Tuesdays to Sundays from 11am to 8pm, and run throughout fall 2024. It has been leased through PlantX Life Inc., whose parent company Veg House is managing the pop-up.
“With Impossible Quality Meats, we wanted to offer diners a fun way to experience our food. From breakfast to lunch to dinner, we leaned into classic craveable dishes people love,” said McGuinness. “Choosing meat from plants shouldn’t feel like a compromise. It’s great-tasting food, plain and simple.”
The menu contains small plates like Asian-style meatballs in hoisin-lime sauce, Italian meatball sliders, nachos with Impossible Beef or Chicken and a Cheez Whiz-style vegan alternative, beef chilli, as well as chilli cheese fries.
Visitors can also choose grilled chicken Caesar (with vegan parmesan), crispy southwest chicken or Asian-style chicken as part of a salad or wrap.
And on the bun menu, there’s a choice of a breakfast sandwich (with sausage and a vegan egg), a classic Impossible Burger, a smash burger, a bratwurst, an Impossible Hot Dog, and a chilli dog. In addition, the pop-up restaurant will also have rotating burger and hot dog specials.
The Impossible Nuggets are served with fries (which can be subbed for onion rings if you pay extra) and a choice from nine sauces.
And while the company may have stopped working on Impossible Milk, that doesn’t mean Chicago residents wouldn’t get dessert at the pop-up. The brand has partnered with Oatly, the world’s largest oat milk player, whose ice creams will be available in vanilla, chocolate and swirl options.
Impossible Foods is hosting a launch party on Saturday, August 17 at the XMarket Food Hall, when locals would be able to sample Impossible Hot Dogs, Burgers and Oatly Soft Serve for free.
Impossible Foods highlights record amid faltering industry sales
Courtesy: Impossible Foods
The development is a marker of Impossible Foods’s reputation as a foodservice mainstay. The company claims to be the leading plant-based brand in this channel in the US, and has long-standing partnerships with American chef David Chang and his Momofuku restaurant group (going back eight years), Bareburger (seven years), White Castle (six years), Starbucks (five years), and Disneyland (four years). And just last week, it completed five years of the Impossible Whopper at Burger King.
In addition to the Impossible Quality Meats pop-up, visitors of Xmarket Food Hall can also buy retail products like its plant-based beef, hot dogs, and chicken nuggets at the PlantX Bodega. It follows the brand’s entry into Whole Foods Market nationwide, which is a sign of its strong retail performance – Impossible Beef is the top-selling plant-based beef in the US across both retail and foodservice, while the vegan meatballs and nuggets are the bestsellers in their respective categories too.
In the US, Impossible Foods is the leader in refrigerated meat analogue sales, making up 9% of the market, according to Bloomberg. However, this segment witnessed a 21% drop in volume 19% decline in dollar sales in the 52 weeks ending May 19, 2024, data by Circana shows. Analysts ascribe this to high prices, unsatisfactory taste and texture, and concerns about ingredients.
Impossible Foods has already been leaning on its taste-first messaging since the identity and packaging refresh in March (with a heavier focus on health too), while it claims to have cut prices by 20% since early 2023.
At the pop-up, prices for dishes with Impossible Foods range from $7.99 for the hot dog to $12.99 for the nachos, chilli-cheese fries, meatball sliders, salads and wraps. Meanwhile, a single-patty Impossible Burger – topped with lettuce, onion, tomato, pickles, and special sauce – will set you back $9.99.
Nutritionist slams ‘unhealthy’ claims about plant-based meat
“The idea that all plant-based meats are categorically unhealthier than animal-based meats is scientifically unfounded. In fact, many plant-based options, like those from Impossible Foods, outperform animal meat in terms of key nutrients like cholesterol, trans fat, and saturated fat,” Kaytee Hadley, a registered dietitian and health and nutrition ambassador of Impossible Foods, told Green Queen.
“Most Americans do not consume enough plants or fibre, and Impossible products contain high-quality plant-based ingredients that contain important nutrients including fibre, iron and potassium,” she added. “Any one food in and of itself will not meet a human’s nutritional needs on its own because people need to eat a diversity of foods and nutrients, but in the context of a balanced diet, plant-based meats, like Impossible, can be a great addition.”
Hadley suggested that basing a food’s nutritional value on the number of ingredients is an “outdated and highly simplistic approach” view of nutrition. “Many foods are enriched with vitamins and minerals (for example, baby food, cereal, and white rice). Does this addition make a food less nutritious? The obvious answer is no.
“When you look more closely at the actual ingredients, processing methods, and nutritional profile of plant-based meats, it’s easy to see that these products are not all necessarily ‘less healthy than animal proteins’.”
In Europe, precision and biomass fermentation startups have attracted €164M in the first half of this year, surpassing the €100M the sector raised throughout 2023. It means this segment alone has made up 57% of the €287M raised by the alternative protein sector in H1 2024.
Where the industry has suffered is the lack of investment in plant-based proteins and cultivated meat. Companies in the former category have only raised €79M in this period, while those in the latter have secured €45M.
The Net Zero Insights data, published by the Good Food Institute (GFI) Europe, mirrors global trends. While plant-based and cultivated players have lagged, fermentation startups have soared, bringing in $398M in the first six months of 2024 (versus $443M in all of 2023).
Fermentation sector targets scale-up and market entry
Courtesy: GFI Europe
Biomass fermentation startups – which use a method similar to beer or yoghurt production to grow large quantities of mycoproteins from fungi – have been the winners so far this year, securing just over €115M by the end of June. This is a 72% rise from last year’s €67M sum.
Meanwhile, companies working with precision fermentation, which involves genetically engineering organisms like yeast to produce bioidentical ingredients like heme, egg and dairy proteins, raised €49 million this year, up from €33M in 2023.
“While it’s great to see investors becoming increasingly confident in this growing sector, it’s also revealing to look at where this money is going,” writes Helene Grosshans, infrastructure investment manager at GFI Europe.
“Many of the fermentation companies that received large investments are focused on leveraging agricultural and food industry sidestreams as a sustainable feed source, helping produce food more efficiently and affordably – both of which are attractive propositions for investors,” she adds.
Grosshans suggests that fermentation startups are using this money to scale up and build the infrastructure necessary to bring their products closer to commercialisation. For example, German startups ProteinDistillery and Infinite Roots, which raised €15M and €53M, respectively, are looking to expand mycoprotein production using raw materials from brewing industries. Finland’s Enifer, meanwhile, brought in €36M to operationalise its mycoprotein factory.
But while the hike in private sector investment is undoubtedly a positive, it isn’t enough for the fermentation sector to overcome one of its biggest bottlenecks: a lack of infrastructure. Some startups are focusing on building pilot plants and factories to aid their commercialisation efforts – but such constriction is expensive.
“Governments should provide grants, loans and guarantees to alternative protein companies to enable infrastructure scale-up and attract additional investments,” says Grosshans.
Contextualising cultivated meat and plant-based investments
Courtesy: GFI Europe
Despite the encouraging numbers for fermentation, the investment figures for plant-based and cultivated meat companies leave a lot to be desired.
In 2023, European plant-based startups received €553M in venture capital – but much of this can be attributed to two deals for Oatly, which amounted to €391M. When discounting the oat milk leader’s investment rounds, the gap between 2023 and the first half of 2024 is much smaller.
“This serves as an important reminder that the sector remains immature, with individual company fundraises still capable of having a major impact on the overall figures,” Grosshans writes.
She adds that despite not attracting the massive capital injections seen a few years ago, successful plant-based companies are still bagging large investments, like Spain’s Heura (€40M) and THIS (€25M).
The cultivated meat sector – which has seen three regulatory approvals already this year – is faring slightly better in Europe, having secured 39% of the €116M startups raised in 2023. “Much of this funding is aimed at scaling up the sector – particularly Mosa Meat’s €40M investment aimed at preparing the company for market entry.
Speaking of market entry, France’s Gourmey last month became the first cultivated meat company to officially file a dossier for regulatory approval in the EU, which is expected to be an 18-month-long process.
Public sector funding key for alternative protein
Courtesy: Onego Bio
GFI Europe’s analysis comes just weeks after a report by VC firm FoodLabs and investment database Dealroom found that investment in European climate food tech startups overtook the US for the first time in 2023, making up 58% of global funding in the sector and reading €2B.
But globally, food tech investments have suffered, as has the wider VC sector. Alternative protein startups saw funding fall by 44%, but experts are optimistic that the “worst is now behind us”, says Grosshans – although a rebound isn’t expected this year.
An interesting finding of the new European data is that while the number of deals is trending downwards (60 in H1 2024 versus 155 in 2023), the value of these deals is increasing. “Investors are willing to write big cheques but, for now, only to companies with strong metrics,” writes Grosshans.
Government support for innovation sectors is crucial to stimulate private-sector investment. “This particularly applies to alternative proteins, which require significant capital investment to build factories and other scale-up infrastructure, and must compete in the price-competitive food industry,” she says.
A good example is the European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator Programme, which has been pouring tens of millions of euros into alternative proteins. Last month, it invested €2.5M each in Dutch palm oil alternative producer NoPalm Ingredients and Swedish precision-fermented fat maker Melt&Marble, as well as €2.4M in oat and mycelium meat maker Millow (also from Sweden). Plus, it was part of Finnish animal-free egg protein maker Onego Bio’s €14M raise in July too.
“In order to realise the climate, economic and societal benefits of alternative proteins, governments need to provide the grants, customised funding solutions and guarantees needed to support the industry, and banks need to provide later-stage capital,” explains Grosshans.
More strategic partnerships with Big Food will help alternative proteins’ case too. These include the collaboration between Leprino Foods – the world’s largest mozzarella manufacturer – and precision fermentation startup Fooditive Group, The Every Company’s animal-free egg partnership with Spain’s Grupo Palacios, and Unilever’s use of Perfect Day’s precision-fermented whey in a new Breyers lactose-free ice cream.
“Private investment has played a central role in enabling the growth of innovative plant-based, cultivated meat and fermentation companies so far,” writes Grosshans. “But new approaches to funding, and collaboration with established food industry players, will be essential for the sector to support Europe’s goals on food security, sustainability and economic growth.”
Seaweed-based meat startup Akua is shutting shop after seven years in operation, citing logistical challenges and the overall decline of plant-based meat.
Akua, the New York-based maker of the Kelp Burger, is ceasing operations, in what is the latest example of the trials of the vegan seafood sector.
In a post on LinkedIn, founder and CEO Courtney Boyd Myers said the company’s board had decided to wind down in late April, seven years after it first began operations. “We had luck, but not enough. We had some wins, but they weren’t big enough,” she wrote.
And in a joint post with the startup on Instagram, she said: “After many, many tough months and hard decisions, we are announcing that our Akua adventure has come to an end. And while we didn’t get to the destination that we envisioned when we were just at the start, we’re more proud than we are sad today.”
Known for its plant-based meat and seafood products from regenerative kelp, Akua first launched its jerky analogue in 2019, followed by its flagship burger in 2021. Having raised $5.4M in funding, its products have been available at retailers and online platforms like Erewhon, Vons, Pavilions, Pop Up Grocer and Good Eggs, as well as at restaurants like PLNT Burger and Hula’s Island Grill.
“We raised money through four different crowdfunding campaigns and over 75 private investors – many of whom are my friends and fellow founders,” said Myers. “Through our events, partners, customers and the thousands of investors who backed us, we built an amazing community of Akua supporters.”
She added: “With that capital and community, we made and sold Kelp Jerky, Kelp Pasta, Kelp Protein Balls, Kelp Spices, Kelp Chocolate, Kelp Beer, Krab Cakes, five flavours of Kelp Burgers (including a collaboration with SpongeBob SquarePants), plus our delicious Kelp Ground Meat.
“While we started as a D2C brand, we learned how to scale our Kelp Burgers into over 1,000 retail stores and with 100+ foodservice customers across the US.”
Kelp, a highly renewable algae, presents a ton of sustainability and nutritional values: it absorbs carbon and nitrogen; prevents ocean acidification; contains essential micronutrients like vitamins A, B6 and K and zinc, calcium and potassium; and is free from saturated or trans fats and carbohydrates.
“We faced many challenges over the years – healthy food is expensive to make and our margins were slim,” said Myers. “We had packaging, manufacturing, warehouse, and shipping catastrophes. We got copied by our supply chain partner. The investors ran into our space and they ran out. Kelp never took off like we thought it would.”
Rough waters for plant-based and alternative seafood
Courtesy: Akua
“As the economy took a turn for the worse, we battled uphill against the general decline of the plant-based movement,” Myers wrote. Sales of plant-based meat dipped by 19% in the 52 weeks ending May 19, according to market insights firm Circana. It reflects “broader changes in grocery purchasing due to the continued pressures of cost of living”, Joanna Trewern, director of partnerships and institutional engagement at ProVeg International, told Green Queen last month.
Many companies in the alternative protein space have felt the squeeze – whether through sales declines, layoffs or more drastic measures. In the last 12 months, Nowadays, SciFi Foods and Sunfed Meats have all ceased operations, while Mycorena has filed for bankruptcy.
Analysis by the Good Food Institute in 2023 found that alternative seafood takes up just 1% of the overall seafood share in the US. Its 2024 research doesn’t have separate figures for seafood, but suggested that within the plant-based space, vegan seafood only accounts for 1% of the market.
Ordinary Seafood and New Wave Foods, both startups making seafood analogues, have been forced to shut too. “Compared to alternative beef, pork, and chicken products, alternative seafood is still a nascent category with fewer companies tackling this problem,” Brittany Chibe, co-founder and CEO of cellulose-based seafood maker Aqua Cultured Foods, told Green Queen last month.
“Additionally, conventional seafood has a health halo and is touted as a healthier alternative to beef, for example,” she said. “Once consumers understand not only the dire state of our oceans but the potential health risks of consuming seafood through its current sourcing methods, seafood becomes much less attractive.”
In her LinkedIn post, Myers said that while the CPG sector was filled with “some of the most wonderful, impact-driven people I’ve ever met in my life”, it remains “a brutal industry filled with a lot of mediocrity, broken systems, and overpriced service providers”. This is why “Akua is one of many fantastic companies with great teams, missions and delicious products that won’t ‘make it’.
The company is currently selling The Last Bundle, a combination of all its products, to sell off its remaining inventory. As for Myers, she said she wouldn’t be building “another supply-chain-related business for the foreseeable future”.
Speaking to Green Queen about alternative seafood’s challenges in February, Maarten Geraets, former managing director of alternative protein at Thai Union, said companies should focus on resizing to lengthen runways and match sales forecasts, engage existing investors with renewed plans, seek support to handle the dip, prepare for eventual growth, and explore partnerships with like-minded players, helping make “an opportunity out of the crisis”.
In our weekly column, we round up the latest news and developments in the alternative protein and sustainable food industry. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers Mr. Charlie’s new vegan cheeseburger, Califia Farms’ acquisition of Uproot, and a raft of EU investments into alternative proteins.
New products and launches
Vegan fast food chain Mr. Charlie’s – dubbed the plant-based McDonald’s – has introduced the Mr. Royale with Cheese, a burger featuring the non-dairy Cultured Cheddar slices by Stockeld Dreamery. The menu item is available at its Los Angeles and San Francisco locations.
Courtesy: Mr. Charlie’s
AI-powered protein discovery startup Shiru has collaborated with Ajinomoto Health & Nutrition to develop and commercialise sweet proteins for use in beverages and specialty products.
Pinky Cole has opened the second location of Bar Vegan – the sister establishment of Slutty Vegan – at 706 Grayson Highway in Lawrenceville, Georgia.
German ingredients company Loryma has developed three wheat-based solutions for specific fat applications to bolster the processing, textural and nutritional benefits of meat analogues.
Also in Germany, poultry giant PHW Group – known for its Wiesenhof brand – is entering the traditional and precision fermentation space with a new subsidiary this year, which will develop ingredients for alternative protein and blended products.
Courtesy: Redefine Meat
Israel’s Redefine Meat is continuing to expand its retail presence in Europe, gaining listings for its 3D-printed meat analogues with Coop in Switzerland, Jumbo in the Netherlands, Velivery in Germany, and Monoprix in France.
As part of the state-funded Singapore Agri-food Innovation Lab, the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) has partnered with global food giant Bunge. The latter will supply soybean, canola and sunflower fats, plus oilseed meal and cake for NTU to produce alternative protein flavours using fermentation.
Courtesy: Nanyang Technological University
And in Vietnam, Hanoi-based FPT Software has signed an MoU with the Green Tuesday Initiative to reduce its food-related carbon footprint via sustainable food policies.
Finance and business updates
In Poland, the science and education ministry’s National Center for Research and Development has invested $2.29M in Warsaw-based cultivated chicken startup LabFarm. It will use the funding to expand production, develop proprietary growth media, create products, and expand its team.
Meanwhile, Sweden’s Millow – maker of minimally processed oat- and mycelium-based meat analogues – has received a €2.4M ($2.6M) grant from the European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator and up to €15M ($16.3M) in equity funding from the EIC Fund. The startup, which has already developed multiple products with large manufacturers, will use the capital to scale up production.
On similar lines, Dutch palm oil alternative producer NoPalm Ingredients has secured €2.5M ($2.7M) in funding, along with potential equity investment, from the EIC Accelerator. It follows a €5M ($5.4M) seed investment round in July.
Courtesy: NoPalm Ingredients
Canadian cellular agriculture platform Cult Food Science‘s portfolio company Jellatech, which is making bioidentical collagen, has joined the Bezos Earth Fund‘s $30M Center for Sustainable Protein at North Carolina State University.
Cult Food Science is also about to close a $3.3M fundraise to commercialise its Noochies! cultivated pet treats. The company will soon begin feeding trials to receive regulatory approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Courtesy: Uproot
US plant-based milk leader Califia Farms has acquired New York startup Uproot, which makes alt-milk dispensers. The latter’s team will join Califia Farms, which aims to expand its foodservice offerings.
AI-powered vegan travel app Vegius has initiated a crowdfunding campaign on Wefunder with a target of $120,000 to fuel its global expansion. It currently lists accommodations in 30+ countries and donates half its revenue to the 125 animal sanctuaries it has partnered with.
Research and awards
A new psychology study on US and German consumers tests the Moral Foundations Theory on cultivated meat, revealing that people who say living a natural life is morally important to them are more likely to reject these proteins, while the idea of harm doesn’t have any consistent correlations.
In the UK, a new study by The Vegan Society has found that 41% of men are interested in veganism, but health concerns and unsupportive friends are the major barriers to the lifestyle.
Courtesy: THIS/Green Queen
The Vegan Society has also supported a legal case by two students from the National Major University of San Marcos in Peru, who are asking the university to recognise veganism as a protected belief and offer suitable plant-based meal options.
UK plant-based meat startup THIS has received 10 stars from the Great Taste Awards across five of its products, with its lamb kebabs earning the maximum three stars.
Another recopient of the Great Taste Awards is vegan cheesemaker Julienne Bruno, whose ricotta-style Crematta has received two stars and burrata alternative Burrella has gained one.
Courtesy: Dr Foods
Finally, Japanese startups Next Meats and its subsidiary Dr Foods were finalists in the cultivated meat category of this year’s FoodNiche Summit at Cornell Tech University, where they presented vegan foie gras, caviar and truffle butter with the aim to find local distribution in New York.
Australia has unique advantages when it comes to pushing the future of protein technology forward, argues independent alternative protein think tank Food Frontier CEO Dr Simon Eassom.
Food systems transformation is increasingly being seen as essential; not just desirable. The pressures created by the need to increase the food supply for a global population – set to grow by nearly two billion people in the next quarter-century – and the growing recognition of current industrial agricultural practices’ effect on the environment, are leading to the rapid development of new technologies focused on food production without the enormous burden it has traditionally placed on our dwindling land and water resources.
In the race for market leadership in this new frontier of food production, Australia is contesting for first-mover advantage with the powerhouses of Europe and the US. Despite being the minnow in the pond, it is strongly positioned to service the growing demand for alternative proteins internationally, especially in Asia, helping to secure a long-term economic outlook through diversified and value-added exports. This is true not just for final products, but also for ingredients, technological IP, equipment, and skills.
The visionaries driving Australia’s cultivated meat sector forward
Courtesy: Magic Valley
Australia’s strengths lie in the convergence of several necessary conditions required to accelerate change. Not least, the requirements for raw materials, R&D of new technologies, investment dollars, and favourable market opportunities present a significant exploitable advantage for Australia.
Recent data collected by Deloitte Access Economics and presented by Food Frontier in its 2023 State of the Industry report for the plant-based meat sector highlighted how (on a per capita basis) Australia’s alternative protein sector is bucking the trend apparent in the US and Europe, especially in foodservice, where the incorporation of plant-based meat into catering options has grown by 53% year-on-year since 2020.
But beyond plant-based meat, the diversification of plant-based ingredient supply, the relatively high levels of investment into the Australian sector – ranked fourth highest in the world for cellular agriculture deal count in recent research published by Nicholas Dahl’s Alternative Proteins Global and receiving the lion’s share of both public sector and $1.2B of private sector investment into alternative proteins generally, according to the Good Food Institute APAC – and the R&D advances made into precision fermentation and cultivated meat technologies highlight Australia’s growing capability.
Much has been made of the success of Australia’s Vow’s launch into the luxury dining market in Singapore and its status as the only company in the world currently offering a cultured meat dining experience. Having navigated the requirements of Singapore’s novel food regulator, Vow’s founder George Peppou is now working with regulators around the world, including Australia and New Zealand’s food safety standards body, FSANZ, to take its cultured Japanese quail worldwide.
Peppou believes that the early obstacles of the necessary investment to overcome technical difficulties and the unavoidable cost of large-scale cell cultures used in the pharmaceutical sector have largely been resolved, and is on a mission to tackle the final hurdle: getting product in front of consumers and growing their acceptance of novel food technology’s ability to produce delicious meat experiences.
It’s a mission shared by Victoria’s Magic Valley, led by founder and CEO Paul Bevan. Magic Valley’s quest is to provide familiar food products such as pork mince and lamb mince into the retail sector at prices at least comparable to traditional animal products but with the added value of not involving either the slaughter of an animal or the environmental cost of animal farming.
Bevan believes that Magic Valley’s technology can provide a product that matches its conventional pork peer in taste and texture for AU$8 per kilo. The startup will be taking its portfolio of evidence to FSANZ for approval very soon. Certainly, public tastings of its pork and lamb meatballs, including a televised tasting on Australia’s Channel 7 network, have substantiated the “real meat” claims of Bevan and team.
Precision fermentation brews up more sustainable food system
Courtesy: Cauldron Ferm
Elsewhere, New South Wales’s Cauldron Ferm is leading the way in establishing a scalable, repeatable, continuous process that will unlock the full potential of precision fermentation. Its proprietary hyper-fermentation technology unlocks significant gains in productivity compared to fed-batch methods.
Currently operating a 25,000-litre demo facility, it expects to open two 100,000-litre industrial-scale hyper-fermentation facilities by the end of 2025. Compared to 500,000-litre fed-batch processers, Cauldron Ferm’s technology promises a 50% reduction in manufacturing costs, greater than 275% more volume of product compared to fed-batch methods, and 4x better payback.
One company already benefiting from a partnership with Cauldron Ferm is Victoria’s precision-fermentation dairy company Eden Brew. CEO Jim Fader argues that previous scale-up and supply chain issues have now been solved and that precision fermentation dairy is delivering industry-mature costs with little capital investment, hinting that Eden Brew will be at price parity with the dairy industry by 2029.
Fader’s bullishness reflects the convergence of requirements for success that he finds in Australia, particularly with the move of his business to Victoria. Apart from Eden Brew’s partnership with Australia’s national research agency, CSIRO, and support from Australia’s leading early-stage tech venture capital fund management group, Main Sequence, it has been supported from the outset by Australia’s 100% farmer-owned dairy co-operative, Norco, which currently has 191 dairy farms producing over 200 million litres of milk annually, with a turnover crossing AU$650M. Norco’s support reflects the growing concern in the dairy sector of the continuous long-term decline of the conventional milk-production industry.
Courtesy: Eden Brew
Whilst leading with the economic case, Fader (and other precision fermentation advocates) don’t shy away from showcasing their environmental credentials. Eden Brew claims that per litre of milk produced by its methods, its proteins produce 70% less emissions, use only 5% of the land required for cow-derived dairy, reduce water consumption by 99% (less than 99.9% of the water used to produce almond milk), emit no methane, and cause no eutrophication of waterways.
UK and New Zealand-based think-tank, RethinkX agrees that the cost of creating dairy proteins via precision fermentation is quickly approaching price parity. In combination with evolving technological capabilities and the maturity of regulatory frameworks, Australia and New Zealand are well-placed to take advantage of these major breakthroughs.
Recently, New Zealand dairy protein precision fermentation start-up, Daisy Lab, received approval from its Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to use genetically modified organisms for the growth of dairy-identical proteins. This follows Cauldron Ferm’s groundbreaking approval from the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator (OGTR) for its controlled use of GM yeast.
Opportunities are being accelerated by some unique and exciting collaborations across the sector. Australia’s deep-tech food innovator, Nourish Ingredients, uses precision-fermented fats to reproduce the taste and mouthfeel that make chocolate and meat so delicious to eat. Focusing on the precision fermentation of a dairy-type lipid solution (called Creamilux), Nourish Ingredients is partnering with New Zealand’s global dairy co-operative, Fonterra, to push into adjacent food product segments, such as bakery, that traditionally rely on dairy fats in their production.
Focus on manufacturing sector and native plant proteins
Courtesy: Tijana Drndarski/Unsplash
This rapidly accelerating push into the ingredient space is fuelling great excitement around Australia and New Zealand’s alternative protein development potential. Plant processing companies such as Essantis, Integra Foods, and Australian Plant Proteins are exploiting Australia’s legume production to produce concentrates and isolates providing anything up to 80% protein by volume.
In a country that produces 85% of the world’s lupin seeds, the technology now exists to provide plant-based proteins with comparable or better amino acid profiles to traditional meat and dairy sources at a fraction of the cost to the consumer and the environment.
It’s an approach pursued by companies like Roquette that recognise the need to produce a “complete” protein while mimicking the functionality of dairy and meat proteins. They are investing heavily in finessing the bioavailability of quality proteins whilst lauding the environmental credentials of pulses such as pea and fava bean with carbon footprints 70% lower than soy and boosting the economic opportunities for local agriculture.
Similarly, Grainstone is using biorefinery technology to revolutionise the value chain for barley producers, converting millions of tonnes of spent grain from the beer brewing industry to lift it from comparatively low-value animal feedstock to high protein, high fibre premium baking flour with 25% of the carbohydrates of traditional flour, 10 times the fibre content, and more than double the protein by weight (26% compared to most baking flour at 9%-13%).
The opportunity for radical food systems transformation has never been greater as hype fast approaches reality. All of these industry players will be participating in Food Frontier’s AltProteins ’24 conference in Melbourne this October.
The day will begin with an engaging keynote address delivered by Satya Tripathi, Secretary-General of the Global Alliance for a Sustainable Planet, who served with the United Nations for more than two decades in key positions across the globe and was most recently as the UN Assistant Secretary-General, Head of New York Office at UN Environment and Secretary of the UN Environment Management Group.
Tickets for Food Frontier’s AltProteins 24 Conference are available here.
Israeli startup ReaGenics has developed a cell-based potato with 31% protein content, which could rise even higher.
ReaGenics, an Israeli biotech startup leveraging cellular tissue culturing to grow plant molecules in bioreactors, has created high-protein potatoes that have significant advantages over soy or pea.
While potatoes typically contain just 2% of native protein and aren’t what comes to mind when you think of a protein crop, ReaGenics has used cellular agriculture to develop spuds with 31% protein content. This could potentially rise to 40% and open up new markets for the company.
“Not all potato varieties can be made into tissue culture,” co-founder and chairman Michael Kagan told AgFunderNews. “But we managed to do it with a select few, and when we optimised conditions for the cells to grow, we discovered that the concentration of the proteins in the cells is far higher.”
He added: “And then by applying different stress conditions (temperature, media etc) you can get it even higher, and this is all non-GMO, with the full spectrum of amino acids that you would find in a [regular] potato.”
Courtesy: Michael Kagan/LinkedIn
A functionally efficient, high-protein spud
While it has been around for decades, plant cell culture is still a burgeoning segment of the smart protein space, and is among a number of technologies “key to tackling the problem of recreating dairy proteins and other ingredients on a mass scale”, according to Albrecht Wolfmeyer, director of ProVeg Incubator.
These startups don’t use regular agricultural inputs like water or soil, instead growing plant cells in bioreactors, which are fed sugar, vitamins, minerals, etc. It allows companies to eschew the huge amount of resources needed to grow plants, and ensure a consistent supply resilient to climate change and other industry issues.
Kagan said cell-based potatoes enable a significant increase in protein production. “At the moment, the main market is for animal feed, although the protein is very close to animal proteins such as egg and casein when it comes to nutrition and functionality,” he explained.
“It is highly soluble and has gelling, foaming, emulsification, binding, texturising and stabilising properties, plus it is non-allergenic, which makes it very attractive to food formulators if the availability is there and the price is right. It has a PDCAAS [protein digestibility] score of 0.99,” he said. The maximum score on the PDCAAS spectrum is 1.0.
Kagan added: “It is also white-coloured with no unpleasant smell or aftertaste you need to cover up, which is not the case with most plant proteins, plus it has a very small environmental footprint.”
Meat and potatoes (sort of)
Courtesy: Dapa Images
ReaGenics is among several startups revolutionising the potato protein market, which is set to grow annually by 7%. Avebe, Tereos, Roquette and Branston are all working in this space. Fellow Israeli company PoLoPo, meanwhile, is using molecular farming to increase the native protein content in potatoes (much like ReaGenics), as well as produce the main protein found in chicken eggs. South Korea’s E Green Global is similarly producing egg proteins in potatoes via plant cell culture.
ReaGenics is currently not building “massive production facilities” for its potato protein in-house, having tested its continuous production process in its own bioreactor platforms, with a capacity between 4,000 and 10,000 litres.
“We are in contact with a number of companies who are interested in creating factories that can produce potato biomass at scale under license,” said Kagan. “In parallel, we’re working on increasing the protein concentration. We think we can get to 40% without GMO, but nature has its limits.”
He said a number of big manufacturers had approached ReaGenics, interested in applications ranging from vegan meat analogues and plant-based milk to high-protein fries and potato chips. Some would want purified potato protein, and others would be interested in the whole biomass, which means cost will vary on the end product.
“At the moment, the main proteins for these products are peanuts and whey, which are both major allergens. The other thing is that we could supply carbs as well as protein, as the potato biomass contains both,” he explained, suggesting that the potato protein could provide a solution to acute malnutrition, a condition that affects over 45 million children under the age of five globally.
Before any of that, though, it would need to pass regulatory hurdles. In the US, this would be in the form of Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status, but Kagan believes it would not be a big challenge given potato protein is a known quantity and his company isn’t using genetic engineering. In Europe, it would mean going through its novel foods framework, which entails a long and complex process.
ReaGenics is also working on other ingredients developed via plant cell culture, such as cannabinoids, resveratrol (a natural polyphenol found in grapes), anthocyanins from purple maize, and coffee. Parisian startup Stem is also using the same tech to make the latter, as is Israeli’s Pluri.
US whole-cut meat analogues maker Chunk Foods has debuted The Prince, an iteration of its new Slab steaks, in partnership with New York City deli Pastrami Queen.
The site of Anthony Bourdain’s favourite pastrami sandwich now has a plant-based offering.
Chunk Foods, the startup making vegan whole-cut steaks, has collaborated with celebrated New York City deli Pastrami Queen to unveil its latest product, The Prince.
Made from cultured soy and wheat, it’s a $20 plant-based pastrami sandwich cut from the Chunk Slab, one of two new vegan steak offerings the brand has brought to foodservice this year. Touted to be the largest plant-based whole-cut meat to hit the restaurant market (weighing over 3 lbs), this marks the Slab’s debut in the US.
“‘The Prince powered by Chunk’ bridges the gap between the past and the future of food with the intersection of traditional Jewish deli cuisine with modern plant-based options, contributing to the dynamic and diverse food scene in NYC and local food culture,” said Chunk Foods CEO Amos Golan, who founded the startup in 2020. “The unique qualities of Chunk’s plant-based pastrami offer a taste and texture comparable to traditional meat.”
Pastrami Queen collaboration will help with texture concerns
Courtesy: Chunk Foods
Pastrami Queen has been feeding New Yorkers since 1956, starting with its original site on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Over the 70-odd years, it has carved a reputation as one of the city’s best delis, praised for its dedication to preserving the flavours and traditions of Jewish deli cuisine. It led the late Bourdain to proclaim the establishment as the “real deal”.
This is why it’s a big deal for Chunk Foods, a four-year-old startup, to team up with Pastrami Queen. The new vegan pastrami sandwich is available at the latter’s Moynihan Food Hall store. It is comprised of the Chunk Slab, New York deli mustard, rye bread, and a pickle.
The fermentation-derived slab steak was first introduced at Chicago’s National Restaurant Association Show in May, where it received a Food and Beverage (FABI) Award. Apart from the base of soy and wheat, the product contains coconut oil, water, beet juice, iron, salt and vitamin B12, a clean-label list catering to an increasingly conscious consumer.
Whole-cut plant-based meats are known for their fibrous texture and mouthfeel, since they replicate animal muscle fibres. Texture is among the main consumption barriers of plant-based meat. A 1,500-person survey this year found that 42% of Americans are deterred from choosing a meat analogue dish at a restaurant because they don’t think they’ll like the texture. However, 91% of those who have tried plant-based protein like its taste and texture and are satisfied with it, highlighting a major perception gap.
Debuting its product at a popular and acclaimed deli like Pastrami Queen will only help Chunk Foods assuage these concerns. “At Pastrami Queen, we pride ourselves on offering the best of traditional Jewish deli cuisine,” said manager Eric Newman.
“Partnering with Chunk Foods allows us to expand our menu with a delicious plant-based option that maintains the high standards our customers expect. ‘The Prince powered by Chunk’ is a great addition to our menu, providing a taste and texture that our patrons are looking for.”
Chunk Foods targets restaurants as whole-cut meat race heats up
Courtesy: Chunk Foods
This isn’t Chunk Foods’ first rodeo into meat-based foodservice. In 2023, it launched into Charley’s Steak House in Orlando, the first time a steakhouse in the US put a vegan analogue on the menu. This evolved into a wider partnership with the restaurant’s parent company, Talk of the Town.
The plant-based meat startup, which has raised $24M in funding (including a $7.5M injection earlier this year), has appeared on other restaurant menus in New York City as well, including Coletta, Anixi, The Butcher’s Daughter and Leonardo DiCaprio-backed chain Neat. And last month, it announced a partnership with popular fast-food chain Slutty Vegan and its sister establishment Bar Vegan.
Chunk Foods is also working on pork, lamb and poultry alternatives, and last year completed the construction of what it claims is one of the world’s largest factories of its kind. It has also gone international this year, linking up with plant protein company Better Balance to create new whole-cut meat analogues for the Mexican market.
That said, plant-based pastrami is a largely untapped market. The Corn’d Beef by Shark Tank alum Unreal Deli (formerly Mrs Goldfarb’s) and the Pastrami Style Slices by Squeaky Bean in the UK are among the few on the market.
Project Eaden is also developing a version made from wheat protein, which is slated for launch in 2025. The startup leverages fibre-spinning technology and is creating its own flavours.
“This has really changed the game, and has created deeper, more complex meatiness and more realistic roasting aroma,” its co-founder Jan Wilmking told Green Queen last month. “The combination of a blank flavour canvas with hardly any off-taste – and truly meaty taste notes on top – makes the products extremely tasty, without being too extreme or intense.”
A quarter of UK consumers say they’d try cultivated meat, recognising its animal welfare and environmental value – but taste and price remain major obstacles.
In 2012, 19% of consumers in the UK said they would be willing to eat cultivated meat, according to a YouGov poll. Now, 12 years on, that number has risen to 26%, with Brits more aware of the climate and welfare impacts of these novel proteins.
On the heels of the UK’s first approval of cultivated meat for Meatly’s pet food, a 2,032-person survey by YouGov has revealed that as the industry has advanced, so has consumer perception of it – although improvements in taste, price and food safety awareness are key to wider adoption.
Nearly three-quarters (74%) of British citizens have now heard of cultivated meat, evidence of the fact that it is now allowed to be sold commercially in Singapore, the US, and Israel, alongside the UK.
However, more people would avoid cultivated meat (54%) than try it, a sentiment particularly higher among women, older citizens and people who don’t eat meat.
UK consumers more open to cultivated meat for pets than humans
Courtesy: YouGov
The YouGov survey revealed that men and people aged 18-24 (36% each) are much more likely than women (16%) and Brits ages 50 and above (around 60%) to try cultivated meat. This trend is in line with the association of meat-eating with masculinity, and Gen Z with greater climate consciousness.
Cultivated meat was most unpopular with non-meat-eaters, 82% of whom say they wouldn’t consume it. And mirroring partisan trends in the US, supporters of right-wing parties like the Conservatives and Reform UK are less interested in cultivated meat (20% and 17%, respectively) than centrists and leftists such as the Labour Party and Liberal Democrats (30% each).
When asked if cultivated meat should be allowed for sale, YouGov found interesting results. Brits are much more in favour of the government greenlighting cultivated meat for pets than humans, a notable finding given that the only startup that has received clearance (the aforementioned Meatly) makes cultivated chicken for dogs and cats.
Nearly half (48%) of consumers support cultivated meat being sold for pets, versus just 30% who are against it. But when it comes to buying it for themselves, only a third (34%) are in favour, while 44% are opposed to it. Currently, the UK’s Food Standards Agency is assessing applications for cultivated beef from Aleph Farms, chicken from Vital Meat, and foie gras (from duck) from Gourmey.
Brits wary of taste, price and safety of cultivated meat
Courtesy: YouGov
In a positive sign for the alternative protein industry, British citizens do recognise the environmental and welfare credentials of cultivated meat. Almost half (47%) of respondents believe these proteins are better for animal welfare than conventional meat, and 43% find them environmentally superior. Only 11% feel it would be worse across both aspects.
However, things are less encouraging when it comes to other factors. Only 3% of Brits think cultivated meat will taste better than conventional meat, for example. But 30% say both would taste the same, while 35% say the former would taste worse. Highlighting the need for further education, nearly a third (32%) of consumers don’t know how cultivated meat would taste.
Similarly, only 16% suggest cultivated meat would be safer than conventional meat, versus 24% who say it would have the same health effects, and 27% who feel it’ll be worse. Here, too, uncertainty looms large, with 33% saying they don’t know whether it’s safer or not.
Brits are slightly more sure that cultivated meat would be more expensive, with 40% saying so. But again, 29% are unsure, and one in five (19%) actually think it could be cheaper.
“Despite the implication that lab-grown meat would not require the slaughter of animals, nor be subject to the same food safety risks of eating e.g. wild animals, the public are significantly less likely to think it would be acceptable to create lab-grown meat from animals not traditionally eaten as food,” writes Matthew Smith, head of data journalism at YouGov.
An identical share of Brits (54%) say it is acceptable for manufacturers to make cultivated versions of chicken, beef, salmon and pork. Similar numbers exist for sheep (53%) and duck (51%), an interesting finding given Gourmey only announced its regulatory application for the latter in the UK (and four other markets) last week.
The Impossible Burger is now a step closer to appearing on EU shelves after the company’s heme ingredient was ruled safe for consumption by the bloc’s regulatory body.
Californian plant-based meat giant Impossible Foods has passed the first part of the lengthy, rigorous regulatory process to sell its plant-based beef burger in the European Union.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has found that the use of soy leghemoglobin from genetically modified Komagataella phaffii (formerly named Pichia pastoris), a strain of yeast used by several alternative protein companies, does not raise a safety concern for its proposed use and levels of inclusion.
Impossible Foods uses soy leghemoglobin as an additive in its plant-based beef range, which gives the products the distinct colour and flavour associated with conventional beef. The company has always marketed the precision-fermented ingredient as the element that makes the Impossible Burger “bleed”.
The EFSA’s opinion is provisional, subject to an ongoing safety assessment by a panel on the genetic modification of the production strain.
Heme has kept Impossible Foods away from the EU
During its R&D days, Impossible Foods was extracting heme from the root nodules of soybean plants, before pivoting to fermentation to enable scale-up and more planet-friendly production.
It starts by inserting the DNA from soy plants into genetically engineered yeast, which is then fermented in a similar way to how Belgian beer is made. It then isolates the soy leghemoglobin (which contains heme) from the yeast and adds it to its beef products.
The yeast strain, K. phaffii, is the same one used by precision fermentation companies The Every Co (which makes animal-free egg proteins) and Remilk (which produces recombinant dairy proteins).
The Impossible Burger, Beef, Beef Lite and Hot Dog all use the ingredient for a hue and flavour that more closely replicate conventional beef. Food safety regulators in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and Singapore have all approved the use of soy leghemoglobin for human consumption, paving the way for Impossible Foods to launch these products.
But so far, the Impossible Burger has not made it to the EU, whose famously stringent regulatory process has held back a number of alternative protein players. However, recent advancements have been encouraging. Just last week, French cultivated foie gras producer Gourmey became the first to apply for approval in the bloc.
This came a month after Impossible Foods cleared its first obstacle too, as part of an assessment that has been ongoing since 2019.
Courtesy: Impossible Foods
EU food safety regulator says heme is safe, but GMO approval needed
In a scientific opinion published in late June, the EFSA Panel on Food Additive and Flavourings noted that the proposed food additive, called LegH Prep, is a liquid preparation containing the soy leghemoglobin and added ingredients and intended to be used as a colouring in meat analogues.
In its submission to the EFSA food additive panel, Impossible Foods said soy leghemoglobin contains a haem B group similar to animal myoglobins and other plant haemoglobins. In conventional meat, this group is responsible for the red colour of uncooked products.
When a burger is cooked, it causes the oxidation of iron, which means oxygen is released and results in a loss of the red colour. And when the soy leghemoglobin is heated above 62°C or exposed to low pH environments (like the human stomach), it denatures. Combined with the release of the haem B group, this plays a major role in generating the flavours and aromas associated with cooked animal-derived meat.
Courtesy: Impossible Foods
The proposed maximum level of heme in meat analogues is 0.8%, which is similar to the amount of myoglobin in beef (0.8% to 1.8%). The exposure to iron is also below the “safe levels of intake” established by the EFSA’s Panel on Nutrition, Novel Foods and Food Allergens.
The filing stated that no genotoxicity concerns or adverse effects had been identified in toxicology studies, and the EFSA did not feel the need to set an acceptable daily intake.
The next step in the Impossible Burger’s journey to the EU is the safety assessment by the Panel on Genetically Modified Organisms. This process has been under a Clock Stop since December 2021, meaning the company needs to provide additional information for the EFSA to complete its evaluation. Currently, the deadline for the GMO risk assessment is set in June 2025.
As the world’s largest protein consumer and highest greenhouse gas emitter, alternative protein needs to succeed in China – here are four ways to do just that.
China houses a sixth of the world’s population, and consumes 28% of its protein supply – but a majority of this is plant-based. That said, meat consumption is set to continue rising over the next decade.
Meanwhile, nations like Japan, South Korea and India are all advancing their regulatory support for novel foods like cultivated meat, which can drastically cut the food system’s emissions. China has expressed interest in the industry too, outlining the importance of advancing novel proteins in its latest five-year plan for bioeconomy development.
President Xi Jinping has also called for a Greater Food Approach that includes plant-based and microorganism-derived protein sources. Plus, research has shown that if Chinese citizens are told about the benefits of a vegan diet, 98% would eat more plant-based foods.
But the industry still faces several challenges, according to Doris Lee, the CEO of GFI Consultancy, the China-based strategic partner of alternative protein think tank the Good Food Institute.
The scalability and costs of cultivated meat and the production efficiency and conversion rates of fermentation-derived proteins are considerable hurdles. There’s also a lack of specialised talent (despite the advancement of agtech in China), and knowledge-sharing platforms. And finally, regulations on industry safety standards, labelling, market supervision, etc. aren’t fully developed yet.
Writing in the monthly Enterprise Reform and Development magazine by the Chinese government’s National Development and Reform Commission, the authors highlight four policy proposals that can solve these bottlenecks and pave the way for the widespread commercialisation of alternative proteins in China.
1) Build a more robust alternative protein ecosystem
Courtesy: BaiChuan Bio Tech
The authors write that developing a built-for-purpose ecosystem is crucial for the industry’s progress. This new ecosystem should be enterprise-centric, bringing together stakeholders from the government, scientific research institutions, investors and regulatory agencies.
These bodies can join forces through resource sharing and complementary strengths to achieve mutual benefits for the industry, and together drive the development of novel proteins.
2) More industry-academia collaborations on research
Courtesy: ProVeg International
Partnerships between industry members, academic bodies and research organisations are key to the success of alternative proteins in China. GFIC estimates that China has nearly 100 Indigenous novel protein sources that entail promising agricultural byproducts and microbial resources.
The R&D and commercialisation of novel proteins can be sped up via collaborative efforts between industry, academia and researchers, which would enhance the sector’s overall competitiveness. Additionally, the authors believe investor education needs to be bolstered to attract more venture capital into alternative proteins.
3) Strengthen the regulatory framework for novel foods
Courtesy: CellX
Government support is essential for this industry’s success. The authors call on China’s policymakers to speed up the establishment of a regulatory approval process for novel foods.
So far, Singapore, the US, Israel and the UK have cleared cultivated meat for sale. Switzerland, Australia and New Zealand are all assessing applications too, while South Korea expects to receive a dossier soon.
The Chinese government should draw on experiences overseas and integrate those learnings into the country’s existing regulatory environment. Additionally, it should support intellectual property protection, enrich talent training schemes, and champion international recruitment. This would ensure that technological breakthroughs can be turned into actual products.
Such government supervision would help integrate the alternative protein sector with existing industries to form a more complete food supply chain.
4) Focus on sustainable development
Courtesy: Jimi Biotech
Environmental protection and sustainable resource use should be considered when promoting alternative proteins, the authors write. To ensure this, China’s technological advantages in biomanufacturing productivity and production scale-up can be leveraged and applied to food innovation, helping provide consumers with safer, healthier and higher-quality protein choices.
Finally, exploring local agricultural resources and upgrading and transforming the domestic processing industry can help lower the industry’s climate impact even further, striking a balance between economic and environmental benefits.
UN figures show that Chinese people are eating more protein than Americans, a majority of which comes from plant-based sources.
China now consumes more protein per capita than people in the US, according to the latest data from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). But while this is dominated by plant-based sources, meat consumption is set to rise, highlighting why the government is batting for alternative proteins.
As reported by the South China Morning Post, Chinese nationals ate 124.61g of protein per capita in 2021, surpassing Americans’ daily supply of 124.33g. This is according to the FAO’s food balance sheets, which measure national protein supply based on the amount produced as well as imported, estimating how much is potentially available for consumption.
Protein consumption is an indicator of food security and quality of life, and China’s efforts to gain ground with the US have been long in the making. But given the size of its population, scholars and leaders (including Barack Obama) have previously been apprehensive about what such consumption levels would mean for the environment.
China’s increasing protein supply isn’t just thanks to imports – the country has ramped up intensive animal agriculture, and is now the world’s largest aquaculture producer. However, its citizens have also upped their plant protein intake (unlike their counterparts in the US), and climate concerns have pushed its government to encourage plant-based consumption and alternative protein production.
Plant-based foods dominate China’s protein supply
Courtesy: Hero Protein
In the US, 69% of the protein supply in 2021 came from animal sources, such as meat, fish, eggs and dairy. But China’s supply of animal proteins was around half of America’s, instead being dominated by plant-based foods.
Vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts and seeds – as well as wheat, oats, rice, barley, maize and their products – made up 60.5% of China’s protein. Its per capita consumption increased by 15.81g between 2010 and 2021, around two-thirds of which came from plant-based sources. In contrast, nearly all of the corresponding 5.31g increase in the US was derived from animal products.
The FAO food balance sheets showed that China’s top 10 protein providers were wheat and rice and their products, followed by vegetables, pork, poultry, eggs, freshwater fish, soybeans, groundnuts, and milk (excluding butter).
Overall, with 145.62g per capita, Iceland topped the world’s protein supply, while the Democratic Republic of Congo had the lowest at 28.59g. Daily per capita protein consumption hit 91.99g in Japan, 108.31g in South Korea, 113.63g in the UAE, and 119.55g in Australia.
The report also highlighted the protein deficiency in India – which last year overtook China as the most populous nation – with only 70.52g of per capita supply in 2021. Meanwhile, among the other top five populous countries, Indonesia reached 79.75g, Pakistan had 70.77g, and Nigeria 59.08g.
Consumers embracing plant-based for health
Courtesy: ProVeg International
Despite sourcing a majority of its protein from plants, China is still the world’s largest meat consumer, accounting for 28% of global intake in 2023 (nearly twice as high as the next on the list, the US), as per data by the FAO and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. By the end of the decade, China’s meat consumption could be up by 21% from 2010 levels.
Its population is four times higher than that of the US, but while the latter’s share of global meat intake is set to increase in the next decade, China’s percentage will decline. This is thanks to growing awareness around the impact of meat production among consumers – 1kg of soybeans provides 56% more protein and generates 48% fewer emissions than the same amount of beef.
While a February 2024 study found that preference for plant-based foods is low in countries like Japan, Vietnam and China, a more recent survey suggests that when Chinese consumers are informed of the benefits of a vegan diet, 98% say they’ll eat more of these foods. This is driven by the country’s large flexitarian population, making up a third of the total.
The major factor behind these intentions is health. Seven of the top 10 statements about plant-based benefits that Chinese consumers agreed with were related to health and nutrition, including that vegan diets lower BMI and obesity rates (56%), are high in calcium and bioavailability (52% agreement), provide adequate protein (49%), and are iron-rich (51%).
China’s government has also been encouraging people to eat fewer animal products and more plant proteins, and recommends including vegetables in every meal and having daily servings of soy and grain products. In 2016, it introduced the Healthy China 2030 policy, which outlined that public health should be a precondition for all future socioeconomic development.
Meanwhile, in December 2021, the country’s 14th five-year plan for agricultural and rural tech development called for research in cultivated meat, synthetic egg and dairy, and recombinant proteins. And in May 2022, the five-year plan for bioeconomy development highlighted an advancement of man-made protein and novel foods – two months after President Xi Jinping called for a Grand Food Vision that included plant-based and microorganism-derived protein sources.
This is crucial for China’s climate goals. As part of its 30-60 policy, the nation aims to hit peak emissions by 2030 and become carbon-neutral by 2060. But by this year, half of all proteins consumed in the country must come from alternative sources if it is to meet the 1.5° goal, one study has found.
Singapore, Canada, the US and Israel are the most supportive governments when it comes to alternative protein policies, while Australia ranks bottom on the 10-country list.
Australian think tank Food Frontier has compared the policies of 10 countries to determine which governments have the most progressive stance on alternative proteins.
Singapore – known as a global hotspot for food tech – and Canada top the list, having achieved or made progress on eight of the 10 key policy issues identified in the list (a score of 7.5). They’re followed by the US and Israel, whose score was 6.5.
On the flip side, Australia comes last in Food Frontier’s analysis with a score of just 1.5. China (2.5) and South Korea (3) fare only slightly better, though they have made some recent strides.
“This comparison clearly indicates where Australia is lagging and should serve as a wake-up call to the opportunities available,” said Simon Eassom, CEO of Food Frontier.
“Certain countries have already established themselves as global leaders in the plant-based and cultivated meat industries and capitalising on the benefits of this,” he added. “With the right government support, Australia can thrive in this sector too and cement its own place as a leader in food and agricultural production.”
The countries at the forefront of alternative protein policy
Courtesy: Lee Hsien Loong/X/Shoko Takayasu/Dave Chan/Getty Images
The parameters considered crucial for the industry’s growth include national plans and climate strategies that involve alternative proteins in some form, dietary guidelines that prioritise vegan food, farmer incentives for plant protein, a clear regulatory framework for novel food approvals, and whether any cultivated meat or precision-fermented products have been greenlit.
Additionally, there was a focus on whether these countries had provided more than $100M in total public funding for these proteins (as of 2023), sufficient support for infrastructure development, as well as support for research and development.
The latter was, in fact, the only parameter where all 10 countries were given positive scores. It was also Australia’s only positive score (it was adjudged to be making progress on the regulatory framework). “Australia has recognised good value in investing in R&D, especially when it is going to value-add to existing agricultural industries. This is also the case for Canada,” Eassom told Green Queen. “Other countries recognise R&D as an easy win, and an effective way for government to support value addition.”
Singapore, the US and Israel are the only countries to have approved the sale of cultivated meat, while Canada joins them on the list of nations that have cleared precision-fermented products. Despite its low score, Australia (and New Zealand) could well be the fourth to greenlight cultivated meat, with local startup Vow awaiting confirmation.
“With limited landmass and a high dependency on food imports, Singapore is motivated by food security concerns and has become a global leader in alternative proteins by capitalising on its existing strengths in innovation, technology and R&D,” said Eassom. “Israel is similarly driven by food security and economic growth potential.”
“Canada has a pulse industry comparable to Australia’s and has dedicated significant resources to become a plant protein global leader, recognising the agrifood value-addition opportunities available to them, enabled by significant investment, government-backed innovation, and world-leading crop, process, and product R&D,” he added.
As for the US, its government has “sent strong signals of support” to the sector alongside large investments, “creating a strong ecosystem for innovation and growth”. This includes an executive order to advance the biomanufacturing industry in 2022, which involved a $2B investment to lower food prices, create jobs, strengthen supply chain resilience, improve health outcomes, and reduce emissions.
Why other nations – especially Australia – lag behind
Courtesy: Food Frontier
The only countries that aren’t making progress on the regulatory front are Germany and Denmark. That’s because they’re both bound by the EU’s novel foods framework, whose stringency and complicated processes have become a thorny issue for alternative proteins.
It’s the reason why even leading products like the Impossible Burger (which contains a precision-fermented ingredient) haven’t made it to the market yet. “The EU’s regulation covers multiple countries with differing priorities, so reaching alignment is a much larger process that takes a long time,” said Eassom.
As for China and South Korea, he suggested that there has been limited support for alternative proteins so far. “In China, barriers exist due to cultural associations of meat consumption with wealth and health, as well as their emphasis on more traditional plant proteins. However, China did include cultivated meat in the government’s five-year agricultural plan, indicating it is becoming more of a priority,” he said.
“While South Korea has not previously led the charge, government leadership is increasing [on] policy and investment in new technologies like cultivated meat. South Korea has recently provided a regulatory framework for the approval of cultivated meat, with applications expected soon.”
Australia was the only country on the list not to have a national strategy that included alternative proteins. “Australia is yet to fully recognise the economic need and value add of alternative proteins since Australia prioritises the future of our existing agricultural industries,” said Eassom.
“Australia also doesn’t have the same motivations as other countries such as Singapore, since it’s not currently considered food insecure. [State research agency] CSIRO has an alternative protein roadmap, but the government hasn’t announced formal strategies around this.”
Food Frontier recently published a report outlining 10 actions its government can take to advance food systems transformation. “This includes developing and executing a National Food Plan and dedicated strategy to grow domestic food innovation, co-invest with industry in enabling scale-up infrastructure, [and] pursue health strategies that encourage the adoption of plant-centric diets, and more,” explained Eassom.
“We’re seeing positive indications from some state governments and federal ministers, which suggest they are interested in supporting alternative proteins investment and/or R&D. The Climate Change Authority is investigating alternative proteins in its recommendations to government,” he added.
“We have hope that interest and support will increase, but it is taking longer than we had hoped to combat climate change.”
Sir Kier Starmer’s Labour government is being called on to introduce a plant-based action plan and reform public procurement to make the UK’s food system more sustainable.
With a new party governing the UK for the first time in 14 years, there are hopes that the change Sir Kier Starmer promised would also bring about a new dawn for the country’s climate plans and food system.
Creating a zero-waste economy, ensuring nature’s recovery, and supporting farmers to boost food security are among the Labour government’s five priorities for the climate. It has also pledged to work with businesses and be pro-innovation.
With these promises in mind, Plant-Based Food Alliance (PBFA) UK – a coalition of 16 organisations and companies, including Alpro, Oatly, Quorn and the Vegan Society – has made six demands of the new Labour government, with the hopes of achieving “the abundant health, economic and environmental benefits of increasing plant-based food consumption”.
PBFA regularly meets with ministers and civil servants on matters related to the vegan food sector, which has continued under Starmer’s premiership. It will be briefing both new and returning MPs on its policy demands to ensure support where needed.
Courtesy: Alpro
1) Promote plant-based foods as part of sustainable and healthy diets
PBFA asks policymakers across national, regional and local levels to support an increase in plant-based food consumption and the role they plan to help the public eat more sustainable and healthy diets.
These foods should be scoped into new climate and health strategies, such as a land use framework, carbon budget delivery plan or green industrial strategy.
2) Devise a national action plan for plant-based food
The UK is being urged to develop a plant-based action plan to unlock economic opportunities and bolster food security, enabling it to become a leader in the sector. Last year, Denmark became the first country to adopt such a strategy, followed by South Korea.
Policies could include new R&D funding through a partnership between UK Research & Innovation and the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), greater support for farmers to grow crops for plant-based products, and increased investment in plant-based production facilities on British farms.
3) Align the Eatwell Guide with sustainability
The UK’s national healthy eating model, the Eatwell Guide, recommends eating five fruits and vegetables a day, dairy and dairy alternatives low in fat and sugar, whole grains over refined, plant proteins like beans and pulses, two portions of “sustainably sourced” fish a week, and less red and processed meat.
PBFA is calling on the government to refresh this guide to include the latest evidence on the health and nutritional benefits of plant-based foods, and incorporate sustainability criteria like GHG emissions and water usage – much like the Planetary Health Diet devised by the EAT-Lancet Commission.
Courtesy: Gov.uk
4) Reform public procurement to spotlight planet-friendly foods
Labour must update the Government Buying Standards and the School Food Standards to ensure that all food sold in public sector catering meets robust health, climate and animal welfare criteria. These standards should also be linked to the refreshed Eatwell Guide mentioned above.
The plant-based coalition recommends more fruits and vegetables to be served in catering settings, and at least one nutritious vegan option available on public sector menus daily. More dynamic standards would allow local businesses and farms to benefit from procurement contracts, and they should be legally enshrined to ensure compliance.
5) Grow more fruit, vegetables, fungi and pulses
A plan for the country’s horticulture sector should be developed and implemented as promised in the Government Food Strategy, which would help bolster the UK’s food security by reducing reliance on imports of fruits, vegetables, fungi and pulses grown overseas.
This strategy should be centred on innovation and infrastructure that can help scale up the supply chain to support the expansion of the plant-based food industry.
6) Level the playing field for plant-based
The UK follows pre-Brexit EU rules that prohibit plant-based dairy companies from using terms like ‘milk’, ‘cheese’ and ‘yoghurt’ on their products, but these restrictions must be reviewed. PBFA argues that this would build confidence and drive investment into the category, as well as pave the way for the commercialisation of fermentation-derived analogues.
Additionally, the government should work with retail and out-of-home sectors to help achieve price parity between plant and animal proteins – one way to do so would be to equalise margins.
Courtesy: Green Queen
How realistic are these demands?
It’s one thing to make these asks, but does PBFA feel there’s a realistic chance that they’re taken up by the Starmer government?
“We have been pragmatic in our asks and realistic on what can be achieved, as well as open to working with the wider food sector on a future underpinned by healthier and more sustainable food systems,” highlights Marisa Heath, CEO of PBFA.
“In terms of promoting healthy diets, Labour pledged earlier in the year to take measures that ensure the ‘healthiest generation of children ever‘. Plant-based diets can contribute to this ambition and the Alliance will be connecting with relevant ministers to ensure they are aware of the positive contribution plant-based food makes to the nation’s health,” she tells Green Queen.
“For long-term solutions, we need to tackle diet change, as obesity and chronic disease [are] a huge burden on our health systems. Plant-based diets have a proven role in tackling obesity and poor health and it seems timely to review the Eatwell Plate,” says Heath.
She adds that if the government is open to receiving and discussing a national plant-based action plan, the sector is prepared to do the work for it: “We believe that is a very small ask at this stage and that there is no reason for the government to not agree to that as we may be able to contribute to plans for economic growth and tackling some of the problems the nation faces.”
Touching upon the demand to grow more produce and whole foods domestically, Heath outlines its food security and national health benefits. “And as it has wide support across sectors, the government will find everyone keen to help,” she suggests.
Courtesy: Department of Health and Social Care
The hope for alternative protein under Labour
Asked how hopeful PBFA is of progress for alternative proteins under Labour, Heath points to comments made by Starmer in February, when he was leader of the opposition. He stated that under his government, at least 50% of food bought by the public sector would be “locally produced and sustainable”.
“Plant-based food is more sustainable than animal-based food in terms of environmental impact, particularly where emissions are concerned. So we expect Labour’s focus on sustainable food will boost both the profile and uptake of alternative proteins,” says Heath.
“Where public sector catering is concerned, we are already seeing university student unions across the country voting for exclusively plant-based menus and schools adopting the ProVeg School Plates programme, which enables more plant-based food to be served in school canteens. So Labour has a foundation of support upon which to build programmes that increase plant-based food in the public sector,” she adds.
“We also know that Labour set out their support for Henry Dimbleby’s Food Strategy, which sets out the need for alternative proteins in the future food systems.”
Fighting off the livestock lobby
Courtesy: AHDB | Composite by Green Queen
One major roadblock for government action is the influential livestock lobby. Research has shown how meat and dairy companies sway lawmakers to block any unfavourable policies and promote the animal agriculture sector. In the US, for example, the Department of Defense recently abandoned its call for projects to produce cultivated meat for the military, after pressure from livestock groups and some Congress members.
Within the UK, the government has been urged by doctors to retract misinformation-spreading ads promoting meat and dairy. These were initiated by the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board, a group funded by farmers and food suppliers that falls under the wing of Defra.
“We hope that the government will commit to better transparency around food policy and consider the idea of having a key stakeholder advisory group that enables all sides to discuss the key issues in a clear way,” says Heath.
She adds that the administration must recognise the need to break down silos between policies within Defra, the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero, the Department for Business and Trade, and the Department for Health. “We have a number of big issues which need to be solved by cross-department working and a range of stakeholders including the plant-based sector,” she says.
“We must tackle health issues alongside sustainability issues for example and recognise that we need to set a new vision for food and diet that will involve a number of solutions, and involve businesses both big and small with the help of key NGOs and public bodies. Too much food policy in the past has been done behind closed doors with influence from a small group of large players.”
The US Department of Defense has withdrawn its call for funding applications to develop cultivated meat for military rations, following pressure from livestock lobby groups.
If you’ve never truly grasped the sheer power of the animal agriculture industry, buckle up.
The livestock lobby has put enough pressure on the US Department of Defense (DoD) – a body that oversees national security and the armed forces – for it to back down on efforts to make the military food system more sustainable.
The DoD has decided to revoke its call for funding proposals that would have seen small businesses and research organisations develop nutrient-dense, climate-friendly cultivated meat products for the US military.
It’s a direct result of lobbying from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), a livestock group that has backed a host of legislative efforts to restrict the progress of alternative proteins. NCBA worked with seven Congress members to get the DoD to back down, all of whom belong to the Republican party.
What the DoD project was about
Courtesy: US Army
It all started in May, when the DoD published its call for proposals to develop sustainable food and materials and reduce emissions related to military operations via bioindustrial manufacturing.
It was put out under public-private biomanufacturing consortium BioMade’s Sustainable Logistics for Advanced Manufacturing (SLAM) Project, with each project receiving between $500,000 and $2M. As part of the sustainable food focus, the DoD was looking for projects that would reduce the carbon footprint of food production and transportation.
“These could include, but are not limited to, production of nutrient-dense military rations via fermentation processes, utilising one-carbon molecule (C1) feedstocks for food production, and novel cell-culture methods suitable for the production of cultivated meat/protein,” the document stated.
There were a host of other focus areas, from sidestream valorisation to carbon capture tech, but the focus fell squarely on cultivated meat. Almost immediately, there was backlash.
The NCBA put out a statement condemning the move in early June. “It is outrageous that the Department of Defense is spending millions of taxpayer dollars to feed our heroes like lab rats,” its VP of government affairs, Ethan Lane, said.
“US cattle producers raise the highest-quality beef in the world, with the lowest carbon footprint – and American troops deserve to be served that same wholesome, natural meat and not ultra-processed, lab-grown protein that is cooked up in a chemical-filled bioreactor,” he added. “This misguided research project is a giant slap in the face to everyone that has served our country. Our veterans and active-duty troops deserve so much better than this.”
Conservative media runs riot on the move
Courtesy: The Washington Free Beacon/Daily Express/The Daily Signal/Daily Mail
The NCBA’s response was followed by a pile-on from a number of conservative media outlets. The Daily Mail called it “bizarre”, featuring comments made by a former Marine to another right-wing website, the Caller.
The Daily Signal – which was, until three days before the NCBA statement, part of the Heritage Foundation, the think tank behind the Project 2025 proposal in the US – ran an interview with the Center for Environment and Welfare. That might seem innocuous by the name, but that’s before you realise that it’s run by a long-term employee of Berman & Company, a PR group behind the Center for Organizational Research and Education (CORE).
The Daily Signal interview went exactly as you’d expect – they questioned the “diversity quota” required for the DoD to “shell out cash”, compared immortalised cells to tumours, and cited a widely condemned UC Davis study to cloud over the climate impact of cultivated meat.
Hubbard also went on the Washington Free Beacon to paint soldiers as “guinea pigs” and call it a political, “anti-farmer” agenda. This was picked up by national newspapers like the Daily Express in the UK.
A cattle rancher represented by the NCBA, meanwhile, appeared on Fox News, slamming cultivated meat for being ultra-processed and countless ingredients (which isn’t the case), and purporting the naturalness of his single-ingredient meat (which isn’t the case either).
DoD gives in to pressure from cattle groups and Congress
Ohio House Representative Warren Davidson | Courtesy: John Minchillo/AP
All of this to say, the NCBA has been successful in its efforts. In a statement earlier this week, it confirmed that the DoD is now no longer pursuing cultivated meat project proposals.
“After weeks of engaging with Congress and speaking out against this plan, we are thrilled to have DoD confirmation that lab-grown protein is not on the menu for our nation’s service members,” said NCBA president Mark Eisele, a rancher from Wyoming. “These men and women make the greatest sacrifices every day in service to our country and they deserve high-quality, nutritious, and wholesome food like real beef grown by American farmers and ranchers.”
Sigrid Johannes, senior director of government affairs at the group, added: “There’s a big difference between industrial or defence applications and the food we put in our bodies. US farmers and ranchers are more than capable of meeting the military’s need for high-quality protein.”
In a sign of just how influential the association’s lobbying was, the NCBA named seven Congress members and thanked them “for quickly acting to ensure that only the most wholesome and unprocessed products end up on the plate for our servicemembers”.
These were House Representatives Don Bacon, Zach Nunn, Warren Davidson and Mary Miller, and Senators Roger Marshall, Cynthia Lummis and Deb Fischer. Davidson is currently the sponsor of a bill that looks to ban federal funding of cultivated meat, an evolution of similar bills previously proposed by Fisher and Marshall. The latter is also the sponsor of a bill looking to ban deceptive labelling practices” on plant-based meat products, which has been endorsed by the NCBA.
While it’s important not to draw partisan lines – especially since restrictive bills with bipartisan support exist too – it’s notable that all these lawmakers belong to the Republican Party. The two states that have banned cultivated meat in the US, Florida and Alabama, are also led by the GOP. And a recent survey has shown that Democrats are far more likely to have a net-positive opinion on cultivated meat than Republicans.
The DoD’s reversal comes a week after a wide-ranging report highlighted the deceptive tactics used by the animal agriculture industry to influence public policy. One prominent example was the US agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack’s ties with the dairy sector, which have helped cattle companies influence some of the biggest policies affecting the sector, like the Global Methane Pledge and the Inflation Reduction Act.
The Department of Defence did not immediately respond to Green Queen’s request for comment.
Plant-based dairy maker Elmhurst 1925 has launched into the vegan meat category with a clean-label dehydrated chicken under the new TerraMeat brand.
In a surprising move, Elmhurst 1925, a plant-based milk powerhouse in the US, has entered the meat analogue category.
It has done so through the launch of a new brand, TerraMeat, which makes Plant-Based Chick’n using only one ingredient: hemp protein. An ambient product, all consumers need to do is add water and oil to the hemp grain powder, and microwave it for 90 seconds – the result would be cutlets that can be seasoned and then grilled, baked, braised or fried.
“At 90 years old, I have seen many changes in the food industry, but I believe Elmhurst TerraMeat Plant-Based Chick’n has the potential to redefine the plant-based meat market,” said Elmhurst 1925 CEO Henry Schwartz, whose father and uncle founded the brand 100 years ago, in an interview with AgFunderNews.
TerraMeat powered by same tech as Elmhurst 1925’s alt-dairy range
Until now, Elmhurst 1925 – which switched from dairy to plant-based in 2017 – was known for its clean-label vegan milks, creamers, sour cream and ready-to-drink lattes.
Its move into plant-based meat is a curious one, considering the category is crowded and financially challenging. In the US, meat and seafood analogues saw sales drop by 12% last year – in contrast, plant-based milk witnessed a minor 1% increase.
Several players have been forced to cease operations over the last year, and plant-based meat and seafood only take up 0.9% of the overall market. For context, plant-based milk accounts for 14.5% of the milk category.
But Elmhurt 1925 is betting on its technology – the same HydroRelease milling process it uses for its plant-based dairy products – to stand out from the crowd. “We start with hemp grain [seeds from industrial hemp plants], which we’ve been working with to make hemp-based creamers,” said Cheryl Mitchell, senior VP of ingredient manufacturing at Steuben Foods, which is manufacturing the TerraMeat Chick’n.
She added: “We apply the same water-based technology that enables us to liberate all the different components, rather than taking nuts or grains and dry milling them to a flour or paste and then having to add stabilisers, emulsifiers, and oils. We had the hemp cream for our plant-based creamers, and it was a case of what do we do with the protein? So we started working with it and the functionality and the applications were endless.”
Mitchell explained that at relatively low temperatures, the protein starts to coagulate and change. “By contrast, when you extrude plant proteins at very high temperatures, it impacts their digestibility, and what I realised with this protein from the hemp seed, was that using our technology to liberate it, it had a functionality at relatively low temperatures, so you can set it at low heat,” she said.
“When you add water, a little bit of oil and you heat it, it develops the texture and the layering that you get in muscle meats, so you basically get a piece of meat in just over a minute from a powder that looks, cuts and cooks just like chicken.”
Leaning into consumer demand for clean labels
Courtesy: Elmhurst 1925
The powdered chicken is available in two formats: the first is a starter kit that also includes a mixing glass, spatula and seasoning blend, and the second is a refill pack featuring the hemp powder and seasoning.
“It has no real taste, so you can season it with whatever you want or just add salt and pepper and it has a far more appealing texture than extruded plant-based meats, which can be like chewing rubber bands,” said Mitchell.
The spice mix that comes with the product contains garlic powder, onion powder, champignon mushroom powder, ground sage, thyme powder, salt, basil and black pepper.
Elmhurst 1925 will be testing the TerraMeat chicken in foodservice via restaurants in New York City over the coming weeks. “It is amazing to work with, it is delicious – one clean ingredient, hemp grain protein,” said Camillo Sabella, a plant-based chef based in New York City. “Unlike any other plant-based chicken product on the market that have sometimes 40 or 50 ingredients. [With] its ability to take on flavours and textures, you can use it in a variety of recipes.”
“We are able to harness the full nutritional quality of hemp protein, making it a wholesome, protein-rich option that satisfies both dietary preferences and the desire for a more sustainable food future,” said Schwartz. Thanks to hemp’s superfood status, each serving of the vegan chicken contains 26g of protein, 62mg of calcium, 10mg of iron, and 6mg of protein.
A survey by Innova Market Insights in 2022 revealed that over two in three global consumers are influenced by clean-label claims, and that almost half would pay more for these products. The absence of additives, the use of natural ingredients, and sustainability positioning are the three most important indicators of such products.
Moreover, for a quarter of respondents, cleaner labels indicate healthier products. This is why brands like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat have upped their focus on health and nutrition, both in product formulations and their marketing efforts. In fact, TerraMeat’s launch came the same week Beyond Meat introduced a new Sun Sausage range made from whole foods like vegetables, grains and legumes.
French cultivated foie gras startup Gourmey has become the first cultivated meat company to apply for regulatory approval in the EU, with dossiers also filed in four other markets.
Gourmey has applied for regulatory approval of its cultivated duck in the European Union, Singapore, the US, the UK and Switzerland.
It marks the first application for cultivated meat in the EU, a major milestone for the industry. The cultivated duck will be used to make foie gras, a French delicacy inundated with animal welfare and environmental concerns.
The Parisian startup has filed dossiers with the European Commission and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the US Food and Drug Administration, the Singapore Food Agency, the UK Food Standards Agency, and the Swiss Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO).
It plans to offer its cultivated foie gras to chefs and restaurants by 2026. “We look forward to continuing to work closely with the regulatory authorities to ensure full compliance with safety requirements throughout these procedures,” said Gourmey co-founder and CEO Nicolas Morin-Forest.
“We are confident that our products will meet these highly demanding standards, so that everyone who wants to can enjoy new gourmet experiences all around the world.”
So far, only Singapore, the US, Israel and the UK have approved the sale of cultivated meat. The EU’s regulatory framework is regarded as the “gold standard in novel food safety and risk assessment”, according to the startup.
“I am thrilled to see member company Gourmey be the first to submit a dossier to the EU and it comes at the perfect time,” said Robert E Jones, president of industry association Cellular Agriculture Europe. “Europe is in danger of losing its competitive edge on a home-grown innovation and we face serious challenges in the food system that can be helped by diversifying protein sources.”
“It’s fantastic to see the first application to sell cultivated meat in the EU has been submitted,” said Seth Roberts, senior policy manager at alterntaive protein think tank the Good Food Institute Europe. “This demonstrates that food innovation can coexist alongside our culinary traditions, providing consumers with foie gras made in a way that could reduce environmental impacts and animal welfare concerns, support investment and provide future-proof jobs.”
A future-facing solution to a controversial tradition
Courtesy: Gourmey
Founded in 2019 by Morin-Forest, Jérôme Caron and Antoine Davydoff, Gourmey has so far raised €65M via public and private investments. This includes a then-record €48M Series A round in 2022, which was used to open a first-of-its-kind 46,000 sq ft cultivated meat hub and commercial production facility in Paris.
It describes itself as France’s first cultivated meat company, and has taken on an iconic – and hugely problematic – food.
Foie gras is up there with caviar and bluefin tuna as the world’s most exclusive and highly prized food items. But each comes with its problems. Foie gras is associated with the force-feeding of geese and ducks, which can damage the livers of the birds and lead to a painful disease called hepatic lipidosis.
Such animal welfare concerns have prompted over a dozen countries to actually ban foie gras, including India, Argentina, Germany, Italy, Norway, Poland, and Turkey. Even in France, three-quarters of consumers are uncomfortable with the force-feeding involved.
And that’s all before you consider the climate impact of raising birds and growing enormous amounts of corn to (over)feed them, just to slaughter them for human consumption in the end. Gourmey’s version, meanwhile, takes 80% less water, land surface and carbon dioxide emissions and uses 45% less energy to make.
Still, it continues to have its proponents. As we speak, it’s being served at the Olympics in Paris, despite what has been touted as the “most sustainable” Games ever, because it’s serving 60% meatless food. This has sparked widespread protests by animal activists, including prominent figures like actress Kate Mara.
Feeding the premium culinary market
Courtesy: Romain Buisson/Gourmey
While most cultivated meat companies have focused on more common meat products like beef and chicken, there is an argument for targeting higher-end foods like foie gras.
Foie gras, of course, is no novel food, but this iteration of the product is. And at a time when costs remain prohibitively high for cultivated meat, targeting the premium end of the market makes more sense financially. It also provides a solution – and contrast – to a country whose gastronomic identity has relied on ingredients mire don controversy, and whose lawmakers have been seeking to ban cultivated meat.
“The premium segment has always been at the forefront of food trends, where the most exciting innovations occur,” said Morin-Forest. “We are witnessing thrilling commercial traction for our first product in many regions where chefs want to keep serving high-quality foie gras.
He added: “Starting with haute-cuisine acts as a catalyst for our future product launches, with chefs serving as the best ambassadors to introduce new product categories to consumers and drive sustainability.”
There are other examples of companies targeting premium meats in this space too. Take Australia’s Vow, which makes cultivated quail as part of a parfait. It became the fourth company to be approved for sale earlier this year, after receiving the green light from the Singapore Food Agency.
“By changing the process of production, rather than the food itself, you are asking consumers to change their behaviour for the benefit of the planet alone. Despite what we’d like to believe, those externalities don’t matter as much as we think to a vast majority of consumers when it comes to purchasing,” its founder George Peppou told Green Queen in April.
“The only way for us to change our behaviour is to offer new foods that consumers choose selfishly. That’s why Vow is different, because we innovate instead of imitating, and therefore offer something that consumers will selfishly choose, because it is deliberately different.”
A giant leap amid rising polarisation
Courtesy: Gourmey
The EU application is a landmark moment for the six-year-old startup, as well as the nascent industry it’s in. For years, this region has been the toughest regulatory nut to crack, thanks to an extremely complex and stringent novel food framework that drove many companies to explore other markets first.
Other EU players like Meatable, Mosa Meat and Vital Meat have all looked to Singapore, for example, which was the first country to give the all-clear. The US and Israel have approved cultivated meat for sale too, and earlier this month, even the UK – a former EU member that for so long continued to follow EU regulations – gave the go-ahead (for pets).
Aleph Farms has filed for approval in Switzerland and the UK too, while Vital Meat is also awaiting approval in Britain. Meanwhile, South Korea is now accepting applications after developing a framework earlier this year, for example, while India is establishing guidance for approvals as well.
Gourmey’s application in five markets is a major statement about its global ambitions. It has indicated that it will also be actively engaged in Asian countries like Japan and South Korea (in addition to Singapore), where consumers have displayed a willingness to try these foods.
The EU’s approval process will include a thorough and evidence-based assessment of the safety and nutritional value of cultivated meat, and is set to take at least 18 months. During risk management and the public consultation phase of the process, it also enables the consideration of the potential social, economic and environmental impacts of the food in question.
The EU Commission and member states play a role in the approvals process alongside scientific experts at the EFSA, which ensures that the authorisation retains the buy-in of all stakeholders. Once the EU approves a cultivated meat product, it can be sold across all 27 EU countries.
A recent survey of 16,000 citizens from 15 EU countries found that Europeans are largely in favour of cultivated meat if it passes safety assessments from food regulators, and a majority are willing to try the novel food.
One major challenge is the increasing politicisation of cultivated meat. Italy and the US states of Florida and Alabama have banned cultivated meat. Other countries and states are making similar moves, including France.
“There’s a lot of polarisation… we need to really have a science-based conversation and public dialogue, nothing that is too ideologically driven,” Morin-Forest told Politico. “These types of food will be part of the diets of the next years and as a European invention, [with] several European champions, we really need to preserve this technological sovereignty.”
“Diversifying protein production is crucial for sustaining food security and contributing to sustainability objectives such as decarbonisation and biodiversity,” he added. “Integrating cultivated food production into existing agrifood value chains provides a complementary protein source that will contribute to resilient food systems.”
This story has been updated as more details have been released.
Dutch food tech startup Mosa Meat conducted the first public tasting of cultivated beef in the EU, another milestone for novel foods amid fierce debate in Europe.
Mosa Meat, the Dutch startup that produced the world’s first cultivated meat burger over a decade ago, hosted a public tasting of its cultivated beef at its test kitchen in Maastricht last week (July 15).
Convening Dutch cattle farmers, food product developers and industry representatives, it marked the first time public members tasted cultivated beef in the EU. It follows the Dutch government’s establishment of a Code of Practice last year, which paved the way for startups to conduct tastings of cultivated meat and seafood before being approved for sale in the EU.
The attendees tasted hybrid beef patties, which combined cultivated beef fat with a custom plant-based mix made in-house by Mosa Meat’s product development team. Much like conventional minced beef that has varying degrees of fat (80/20, 90/10, etc.), the company is still experimenting with the optimal proportion of cultivated fat and plant-based ingredients (which are already widely accepted as food-grade and safe to eat).
Courtesy: Mosa Meat
“We specifically evaluated the potential of cultivated beef fat as an ingredient in a blend with plant-based ingredients as we know it is responsible for the flavour, aromas, mouthfeel and even sizzle people love from beef,” said Maarten Bosch, co-founder and CEO of Mosa Meat, which is awaiting regulatory approval in Singapore.
“We’ve been able to conclude that our cultivated fat has a very positive impact on the product quality,” he said. “This means that in addition to the cultivated beef for which we have submitted a regulatory approval request in Singapore, we can also elevate the culinary experience of plant-based products and delight more beef lovers faster.”
The development comes just three months after fellow Dutch startup Meatable hosted the EU’s first cultivated meat tasting, serving its hybrid pork sausages to chefs, journalists, industry stakeholders and public officials.
Cultivated beef burger impresses taste-testers
Courtesy: Mosa Meat
Mosa Meat said the purpose of the tasting was to the market readiness of products and collect feedback from culinary experts for product development purposes. “We are delighted to finally share our burgers with experts outside of the company, so they can help us create the best burgers possible,” said Bosch.
“The burger really tasted like meat,” said one attendee. “Usually I don’t eat meat, but I miss the taste of meat a lot, and this is the way to ultimately add it back to my diet, I hope.”
Another added: “I thought the burger was delicious. It was juicy, nice and succulent.”
The tasting follows the company’s latest €40M ($42.4M) fundraising round in April, which was the largest investment in a cultivated meat company since November 2022. It took total investment in the company to over $135M, and is helping Mosa Meat scale up its production processes and accelerate its route to market.
In May 2023, the startup opened what it claims is currently the world’s largest cultivated meat facility in Maastricht. This “cultivated meat campus” is its fourth plant, expanding its footprint to 7,340 sq m (79,007 sq ft), and has a 1,000-litre bioreactor scale that can produce “tens of thousands of cultivated hamburgers”.
Courtesy: Mosa Meat
When Mosa Meat first unveiled a cultivated meat burger in 2013, the two proof-of-concept patties cost $330,000. Since then, the company has since managed to slash costs repeatedly. In 2020, it brought down the price of its own growth medium by 80-fold, and the following year, it reduced the cost of its fat medium cost by 66 times.
To further these efforts, it secured a €2M grant from the EU to cut production costs by 100-fold in 2021. And in 2023, it partnered with its investor Nutreco to create a cell feed supply chain and shift to food-grade amino acids to achieve this reduction without affecting yield.
While its exact production costs are not known, the company has indicated that these have continued to decline rapidly, and it’s confident that it will enter foodservice at a price point that works for chefs and restaurants.
Mosa Meat advocates for speed efficiency in EU novel food regulation
Courtesy: Mosa Meat
Mosa Meat’s beef is still undergoing evaluation by the Singapore Food Agency, which was the first regulator to clear cultivated meat for sale with Eat Just’s Good Meat chicken back in 2020. It has since greenlit cultivated quail made by Australia’s Vow.
But the original nine- to 12-month timeline Singapore has touted has been hard to realise for multiple applicants. Apart from Mosa Meat, it’s also assessing dossiers from Meatable, Aleph Farms and Vital Meat, among others.
Like others, Mosa Meat is planning to enter the market via foodservice too, allowing chefs to bring out the true potential of its cultivated beef when consumers first try it. This also allows breathing room to expand operations and meet the volume demands of retail contracts.
While it awaits the regulatory nod in Singapore, Mosa Meat will concurrently submit applications in other markets in 2024, and has highlighted the US, the EU, Switzerland and the UK as top targets. These regions have established regulatory frameworks and represent a billion consumers combined, which would allow the company to make a larger impact.
The UK just issued its (and Europe’s) first approval to cultivated pet food maker Meatly last week. But no company has so far received clearance in the EU, where the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has a complex and stringent framework, thanks in part to the fact that it has 27 member states.
Courtesy: Mosa Meat
“We embrace the robust nature of the Commission’s review because we know it is the gold standard in the world and will inspire broad consumer confidence,” Robert E Jones, VP of public affairs at Mosa Meat, told Green Queen. But he added: “There are some efficiencies that can be achieved in the speed at which dossiers are reviewed without sacrificing safety, and we continue to work with regulators on implementing those administrative reforms.”
One example of this is the EU’s updated guidance documents for novel foods, which reflects recent advancements in the sector and capitalise on the EFSA’s increased experience in assessing novel foods. The document is set to be published in September, and was built on multiple rounds of feedback by groups like Cellular Agriculture Europe. Jones, who is president of this trade association, said: “We see it as a step in the right direction and an indication that the EU is hearing our feedback about ways to improve efficiencies in the novel food process.”
Several other hiccups exist for cultivated meat. In the US, Florida and Alabama have banned cultivated meat, and a number of states are proposing similar measures. But these were preceded by Italy, which announced a ban last November, the first of its kind anywhere in the world. France, Romania and now Hungary are all thought to be mulling restrictions too – despite consumers largely expressing support for these foods.
“While some right-wing governments insist on inserting cultivated meat as a topic in their populist culture war, they are not representative of the vast majority of the European Union,” stated Jones. “The consensus among member states remains to be that innovation and conventional agriculture can coexist in order to boost European competitiveness and food security. I am confident that viewpoint will win the day.”
Former TiNDLE Foods CEO Andre Menezes on why plant-based meat industry founders need to start facing some hard truths.
Over the past few years, I have had the privilege of engaging with numerous founders, professionals, and investors in the plant-based alternatives sector. It is surprising how many of them still overlook the critical context of their industry, failing to recognize that the challenges they face go far beyond flawed marketing, price parity, ingredient list and product performance. While these areas undoubtedly need improvement, the real challenge is much larger, more complex, and deeper. Consumer adoption has proven to be more nuanced and difficult than initially anticipated, and their relationship with meat and the lack of motivation to reduce meat consumption at the time of purchase are significant barriers. This is the primary reason this sector’s growth has been both incredibly expensive and slow. In my opinion, this headwind is the most relevant, and this oversight is likely to lead to many-a-failed company.
It is undeniable that the plant-based alternatives industry is navigating troubled waters, similar to many disruptive sectors such as EVs have already faced. This doesn’t mean the industry will die or fail to grow from its current state, but it does mean that the environment and strategies need urgent adaptation.
From 2019 to early 2022, the industry experienced a race for rapid growth, fueled by excess liquidity. Profitability wasn’t a focus; the strategy was to grow as fast as possible, raise more funds, and continue investing to become a leader in one of the most promising and fast-growing categories at that time. Burning cash wasn’t an issue with the right unit economics and growth metrics, as more funds were always just around the corner. However, things have since drastically changed.
Venture funding was initially driven by the expectation that the plant-based alternatives industry would disrupt and capture a significant share of the $2 trillion meat and dairy market, promising huge growth, greater valuation, and substantial returns for investors. However, after an initial pop, growth in the category has stagnated, which means raising capital at previous valuations is no longer an option. This shift doesn’t spell doom for the industry. In fact, it might force the sector to become more sustainable and efficient. Profitability is no longer merely optional, it’s now a necessity. Companies with cash runway must urgently devise strategies to achieve profitability, potentially including inorganic consolidation. Failure to reach profitability will more than likely result in bankruptcy, or at best, a small exit that won’t satisfy shareholders, especially founders who have dedicated years of their lives to the business, usually without a plan B.
All of this should be apparent to anyone involved in the business, especially those who have been operating or investing in this sector for a few years. Surprisingly, certain founders and more than a few investors I have been speaking to still cling to outdated strategies and hypotheses. They continue to attribute the industry’s stagnation only to product issues and flawed marketing. While both of these do require significant improvement, the reality is that the investment, assortment, variety and attention this sector has received should have led to higher actual category growth.
Geography and category examples highlight the importance of consumer readiness
There are enough elements, cases, and launch attempts to show that the most significant factor for adoption (or lack thereof) is not the product or the marketing itself, but consumer readiness in each market. On the product side, there are many applications where plant-based products are indistinguishable from their meat counterparts but still sell a tiny fraction of their animal counterparts – even when the price is close or at parity.
For instance, in my opinion, the Impossible Whopper from Burger King US is nearly indistinguishable from the chain’s regular Whopper. I invite you to go to any Burger King in the States and try an Impossible Whopper and a regular Whopper. Then drive 20 miles and do the same test at another Burger King location. You will likely find that the difference between the two beef patties from different locations is more significant than the difference between beef and Impossible meat in the same location, prepared by the same staff. However, if you ask the staff how many Impossible Whoppers they sell compared to beef Whoppers, you will be shocked at the discrepancy. When product quality, price, and marketing are equivalent, what could possibly explain the immense difference in their respective performances? In my opinion, this is where consumer openness and adoption at a societal level have been drastically overlooked.
In Germany, the situation is much better according to Burger King Europe’s own data, with 1 in 5 Whoppers sold being plant-based. While some might rush to conclude that the German product—made by Unilever Vegetarian Butcher—is superior or better marketed than its US counterpart, such an argument could easily be countered by the fact that other EU countries offering the same product do not perform at the same level. Germany has a longer history of education around sustainability and the environmental impacts of the food system than most countries in the world. Eco-friendly behaviours, ranging from recycling strategies and energy efficiency incentives to higher efficiency cars, are just some of the many examples of behaviours resulting from Germany’s decades of education around sustainability, matched with policies that encourage companies and individuals to consume fewer resources. In Germany, the environmental impacts of our food system are better understood, and consumers are increasingly trying to reduce their impact on the environment.
Interestingly, the plant-based milk sector has had more consistent success across most markets. If you enter any trendy urban coffee shop in a developed economy, you will find that plant-based milk often accounts for 50% or more of milk sales. This is despite plant-based milk being far more expensive and usually nutritionally inferior to cow’s milk in terms of protein, sugar, and other minerals. The success of plant-based milk brands shows that marketing, product quality, and price alone are not the sole determinants of market success. While I don’t believe there is one definitive answer to explain the relative success of this category, it is clear that there is less consumer resistance to switching from cow’s milk and fewer barriers to adoption despite the usually higher prices. Factors certainly include the prevalence of milk allergies and the fact that milk is not as aspirational an ingredient as meat, among others.
Shifting consumer behaviours requires more than product-market fit and better marketing
Shallow comparisons to companies like Tesla often emerge, suggesting plant-based meat companies should simply mimic Tesla’s approach to drive up the category adoption. While Tesla’s role in the EV revolution is category-making, comparing its growth across different markets shows that adoption requires more than a coveted product and great marketing. Relative EV market growth in the US compared to Norway or China illustrates that EV adoption involves a complex interplay of factors beyond just product appeal and marketing. Not only the funding for EVs has been multiple times higher than alternative proteins, but -most importantly- there were significant financial incentives targeted at driving demand coupled with consumer subsidies, privileged access to parking and city toll exemption. Further reading on the EV/Alt-Protein industry comparison can be found here.
Recognising the headwinds and reshaping the strategy for success
While it feels comfortable for founders and their investors to look at failed attempts as being the result of flawed marketing or product quality while hoping that their companies are exceptional and that the headwinds won’t affect them, they should honestly ask themselves whether they will be able to raise funds on the same good terms and/or grow to profitability organically like most others haven’t been able to before they run out of cash. Founders and investors must reassess their strategies to align with the current environment. Without profitability, scale and growth, chances of successful funding rounds are slim and successful exits are highly unlikely as valuations increasingly rely on classic food business multiples, which are orders of magnitude less than the coveted SaaS/tech numbers.
Facing headwinds is a natural part of business, and resilience is an essential trait for a startup founder. However, this must not turn into stubborn blindness, and result in leading companies to failure or frustrating exits after years of hard work. Recognizing and adapting to the new normal is crucial for navigating the challenges ahead.
The good news is that category leaders often do emerge exactly in times like these, when businesses with the right scale, profitability and strategy can leverage the challenges faced by the broader category to solidify their presence, navigate troubled waters and point towards a brighter future.
In our weekly column, we round up the latest news and developments in the alternative protein and sustainable food industry. This week, Future Food Quick Bites covers VFC’s ad in response to KFC’s new campaign, a new oat milk company, and an alternative protein week.
New products and launches
Slovenian whole-cut plant-based meat producer Juicy Marbles has introduced its newest product, Baby Ribs, made with a cleaner-label recipe. The 350g pack will roll out tomorrow, and newsletter subscribers who pre-ordered the product could receive prototypes of its lamb rack or bacon.
Courtesy: Juicy Marbles
Shane Stanbridge and C-Y Chia, owners of Oakland’s now-closed Lion Dance Cafe, are working on a cookbook inspired by the vegan restaurant, and have put out an open call to ask customers which dishes they should include in the recipe list.
Catering giant Compass Group‘s Eurest division has linked up with Irish company The Plant-It Food Co to serve the latter’s vegan chicken across non-commercial operations in Seattle, San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, and Philadelphia. A national rollout will follow soon.
UK plant-based brand Framptons has unveiled the Wessex Oat Company, a range of discount oat milk in original, unsweetened, oat latte, caramel latte, and chocolate flavours for £1.49-1.99. It will also introduce a single cream alternative later this year.
Courtesy: Framptons
German vegan startup Planteneers has developed a fully plant-based Italian buffet. It showcased the menu with Marriott International, preparing vegan tiramisu, white fish and mortadella sandwiches for 1,450 attendees at the Future Food-Tech trade show in San Francisco.
Meanwhile, German producer Greenforce has linked up with UAE agrifood tech company Silal to bring its dehydrated plant-based meat mixes to foodservice locations in the Middle East and Africa region.
Also in Germany, discount supermarket Kaufland has expanded its own-label vegan, K-Take It Veggie, by around 20%, crossing 100 SKUs. It comes a year after it reduced the prices of its private-label plant-based products to match animal proteins.
In Australia, vegan food maker Plantein has rolled out an affordable line of ready-to-cook meals at Woolworths stores, featuring burgers, mince and meatballs for A$2.95 ($1.97).
Courtesy: Fascin8foods
And fellow Australian company Fascin8foods has expanded its Froom range of whole-food plant-based burgers, mine and meatballs to retailers in New South Wales and Queensland.
Company and event updates
Ingredients giant AAK has received a ‘no further questions’ letter from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the use of shea stearin, a plant-based fat that can replace cocoa butter and coconut oil, among others.
The Plant Based Foods Association has partnered with jobs platform Tälist, enabling its members to post open positions on a specially curated version of the AltProtein.jobs board.
Courtesy: Livekindly Collective
New York-based firm Livekindly Collective – the parent company of Like Meat, No Meat, Oumph! and Alpha Foods – has named David Suarez as CEO. Suarez moves up from his previous role as chief supply chain officer.
The Cultured Meat Symposium and UC Davis’ Integrative Center for Alternative Meat and Protein (iCAMP) have collaborated to host the Alternative Protein Week (September 9-13), which will convene over 300 researchers, policymakers, investors and stakeholders to discuss novel protein production.
Two months after opening its first European plant-based production line in Germany, Dutch drinks company Refresco has acquired Spanish white-label plant-based milk maker Frías Nutrición for an undisclosed sum.
Courtesy: VFC
UK vegan chicken maker VFC has launched a new campaign taking a shot at KFC‘s Believe in Chicken campaign, calling on people to ‘Believe in Chickens’ instead. The plurality aims to highlight the fast-food giant’s “hypocrisy”.
Research, policy and awards
What really drives people away from cultivated meat? One new study suggests it could be people’s morals, with Germans and Americans who care about the purity and naturalness of life are less inclined to eat these proteins. It highlights another pain point around consumer education for the sector.
Minnesota governor Tim Walz has announced a $200M Climate Pollution Reduction Grant from the US Environmental Protection Agency to cut greenhouse gas emissions from the state’s food system
US mycelium meat producer Meati has received the Sustainable Plant of the Year award by Food Engineering magazine for its 100,000 sq ft Mega Ranch in Thornton, Colorado.
Courtesy: Meati
A campus-wide meat-free trial at the University of Bonn in Germany found that up to eight weeks after the trial ended, sales of meat were lower by 7-12% than before the veggie month, with 80% of students saying they want to see more meatless meals in the canteen.
Finally, in the UK, polling by Bosh! has revealed that nearly half (49%) of the country’s vegan population is male, subverting trends seen in previous research, which has suggested that veganism is much more common among women.
Californian vegan giant Beyond Meat is diversifying its product line with new whole-food plant-based Sun Sausages as consumers clamour for healthier products.
One of the largest plant-based meat brands in the world is now betting on veggies. Beyond Meat has unveiled Sun Sausage, a new range of links made from vegetables, grains and pulses.
The three-strong lineup is the latest in a series of product launches that increasingly focus on health, just as the Californian company make moves to restructure its debt after sales declined for eight consecutive quarters.
The Sun Sausages – a reference to the fact that “you’re eating sun-powered, wholesome and nourishing plant-based ingredients” – come in packs of four in cajun, pesto and pineapple-jalapeño flavours, with each link featuring 12g of protein from a variety of sources. The whole-food plant-based sausages also contain 46% less fat than the recently revamped lineup of Beyond Sausages (which are meant to replicate pork).
“Our goal is and always has been to make delicious and healthy plant-based protein options,” a company spokesperson told Green Queen. “For Beyond Sun Sausage, we wanted to offer consumers something that was new and unique, without being constrained to trying to mimic beef, pork or poultry.”
Beyond Meat joins the whole-food plant-based party
Courtesy: Beyond Meat
The new sausages source their protein from yellow peas, brown rice, red lentils and faba beans, which are complemented with avocado oil (a fixture in all of Beyond Meat’s latest products), oat bran and fibre, methylcellulose, natural seasonings, and a casing made from sodium alginate. Depending on the flavour, the links also contain vegetables like red bell pepper, spinach, pineapple and jalapeño.
More and more brands are catering to consumers who want more natural ingredients from whole-plant sources. Research has shown that whole-food protein saw the sharpest rise in consumption among Americans between 2022 and 2023, with 28% eating them ‘somewhat’ or ‘much more’. Putting the ‘plant’ back in ‘plant-based’ was also among Whole Foods Market’s top 10 food trends for this year.
Fellow industry giant Lightlife introduced Tempeh Protein Crumbles earlier this year to offer a “clean” alternative to minced meat. And even in foodservice, Smashburger has embraced jackfruit-based burgers, Dave’s Hot Chicken rolled out its first meat-free options with cauliflower sliders and bites, and Kernel, the new robot restaurant chain by Chipotle founder Steve Ells, spotlights whole foods too.
That said, each of the new Beyond Sun Sausage flavours contains over 20 ingredients. As the debate over ultra-processed foods surges on, many consumers associate long ingredient lists with overprocessing and, subsequently, ill health.
“We’re proud and excited by the super clean and simple ingredient list of Beyond Sun Sausage. With protein from sun-powered legumes and healthy fats from avocado oil, this product offers something truly unique and different from other products on the market,” the spokesperson said.
Courtesy: Beyond Meat
They added that the product – much like its other recent offerings – has been certified by the American Heart Association’s (AHA) Heart-Check programme and the American Diabetes Association’s Better Choices for Life initiative.
A poll by the International Food Information Council this year found that health is the biggest motivation for Americans to eat vegan or vegetarian food, with 55% citing it. A quarter of people also suggested they had health concerns about consuming animal protein. “Consumers can feel confident that not only will it taste great, but it’s great for their health too,” they said.
Notably, the Sun Sausages contain just 1g of saturated fat per link, and 320mg sodium (30% lower than its vegan pork sausages). These are the two elements Americans are trying to limit the most in 2024 (44% and 50%, respectively) – and the foods consumers are avoiding most to lower saturated fat are beef (46%) and pork (44%).
Is the Beyond Sun Sausage a marker of things to come?
Courtesy: Beyond Meat
In the last five months, Beyond Meat has reformulated several of its products. It rolled out the latest iteration of its flagship burger and mince in February, its line of beef crumbles with a new recipe in May, and the revamped sausages a month later.
The product innovation has been prolific, but is there any concern about choice paralysis among consumers? “We are proud of our emphasis on health-focused innovation, and are excited to introduce Beyond Sun Sausage as it addresses the consumer interest in new, clean and healthy plant-based protein options,” the spokesperson said when asked about this.
“Beyond Sun Sausage brings bold, culinary-forward flavours that can enhance any dish – from breakfast scrambles and frittatas to pastas, pizzas and more – it’s a convenient, healthy clean protein option for consumers,” they added, describing the target consumer as “anyone who’s looking for new, clean and healthy sources of absolutely delicious protein”.
The Sun Sausage range will retail for $9.99 and is launching exclusively at Sprouts Farmers Market stores nationwide, but the company hinted at “additional availability updates in the future”.
Beyond Meat did not respond to Green Queen’s questions about whether this is the first of a series of whole-food products (like veggie burgers), or whether it will be placed next to plant-based meats or in a separate aisle in the supermarket.
It opens up a new base of competitors for Beyond Meat, which has for so long been fighting for market share with the likes of Impossible Foods, Maple Leaf Foods, MorningStar Farms, and Gardein in the US. Now, it will also count whole-food plant-based startups like Actual Veggies, Karana, The Jackfruit Company, NoBull Burger and Caju Love as challengers.
Courtesy: Beyond Meat
The shift comes a week after it was reported that Beyond Meat is in talks with bondholders to restructure its debt, following a financially turbulent period for the Nasdaq-listed business. In Q1 2024, its revenues narrowed by 18% year-on-year, though it was slightly higher than analysts’ expectations. The company did not respond to our request for comment on the balance sheet restructuring.
As it looks to improve its market performance, Beyond Meat has doubled down on the health focus, with an upcoming ad campaign set to highlight the nutritional benefits of the Beyond IV platform, and a new Serve Love cookbook released alongside the Beyond Sausage in collaboration with the AHA.
“We are excited to continue introducing our tastiest and most nutritious products yet that have garnered the support of the leading health organisations, while also continuing to educate consumers on the health benefits of our products,” the brand told Green Queen last month.
The Dutch alternative protein ecosystem is faced with a host of challenges, but increased investment and policy support can propel a climate-friendly food system.
The Netherlands recently became the first EU country to allow (and host) public tastings for cultivated meat, a marker of the government’s forward-thinking approach to the food system.
However, many challenges remain for a true acceleration of alternative proteins, which are set to represent a €10B market in the country by 2030. This will be fuelled by declining production costs technological advancements, and evolving consumer needs.
So while the sector is well-positioned to capitalise on this opportunity, it first needs to overcome the many obstacles preventing startups in this industry from scaling up, according to a new report by local firms Foodvalley NL and Invest-NL.
“The report highlights the critical need to address the scaling challenges of startups and scaleups,” said Emmanuel Anom, lead of shared facilities at Foodvalley NL. “By strategically investing in shared facilities and implementing supportive financial mechanisms, we can position the Netherlands as a world leader in the transition to sustainable protein production.”
Tackling the four main scale-up challenges
Courtesy: Foodvalley NL/Invest-NL
The report outlines four key barriers for companies looking to move from lab-scale to commercial production. The first concerns limited access to facilities, with demonstration- and pilot-scale infrastructure currently inefficient to meet demand. This hampers startups’ ability to test and optimise their processes, and delays their route to market.
The high operational costs of pilot facilities are another major hurdle. This involves the prices of equipment, raw materials as well as personnel, and poses a significant financial burden on startups looking to scale up in an increasingly tough funding environment.
Companies also have to deal with regulatory complexities. As part of the EU, the Netherlands follows the bloc’s stringent novel foods regulation. But the complicated, time-consuming and expensive application process here has proved to be a huge bottleneck for alternative protein companies. While regulators in the US and Asia have approved the sale of cultivated meat and precision-fermented proteins, no such clearance has been granted in the EU.
Finally, there’s a big funding gap between the R&D and commercialisation phases, something the report’s authors term the ‘Valley of Death’. This lack of investment can hold back innovation and prevent technologies from reaching the market.
The importance of shared facilities
Courtesy: Foodvalley NL/Invest-NL
Shared facilities can be crucial to commercial growth, helping startups access essential infrastructure and expertise. But the current manufacturing landscape in the Netherlands is fragmented.
The present capacity of shared facilities is limited and insufficient to meet the growing demand from companies across the three alternative protein pillars: plant-based, fermentation and cell cultivation.
Many of these shared hubs also lack the specialised equipment and expertise required for the production of specific proteins. This limits their efficacy in supporting a diverse set of companies.
Additionally, these facilities suffer from high operational costs, scheduling conflicts and limited flexibility, hindering companies’ ability to use them efficiently.
As a solution, it may be wise to look towards best practices on an international scale, including in countries like the US, Israel, Germany and Singapore. These models focus on flexibility, cost-consciousness, strong leadership, robust networks and government support as their main drivers of success.
Learning from these practices could help the Netherlands develop a more effective and supportive ecosystem to scale up alternative protein production, according to the authors.
How the Netherlands can support alt-protein scale-up
Courtesy: Meatable
The report lists three recommendations to overcome these scalability challenges. It suggests developing a national collaboration strategy, which would involve creating innovation clusters to facilitate interaction among startups, research institutions and corporate partners.
Government policies must support these alliances with structural investments and infrastructure. Additionally, the authors call for streamlined regulations and policy incentives (like tax breaks) to aid the industry’s growth.
The report also recommends establishing regional hubs with state-of-the-art shared facilities across the country, backed by public-private partnerships. Investing in specialised equipment and expert personnel is crucial to cater to different protein production processes, and implementing flexible access models is key to making such hubs more affordable for startups.
Finally, there needs to be greater financial support in the form of voucher systems, operational subsidies and innovative funding models (like co-investment funds) to ease the burden on companies.
It will also be necessary to introduce bridge-funding schemes to aid the shift from R&D to commercialisation and ensure that policies provide financial incentives to the sector.
“To achieve a sustainable and climate-neutral food system, transitioning to alternative protein sources with lower emissions is crucial. The Netherlands has a unique opportunity to become a global leader in the alternative protein revolution,” said Michiel Strijland, business development manager at Invest-NL. “This report serves as a call to action for all parties to work together and stimulate the growth of this promising sector.”
A new economic bill in Massachusetts pledges investment into alternative proteins, with Senator Barry Finegold calling food science a climate and health priority for the state.
If you’re caught trespassing or creating a public nuisance in Florida, you could go to jail for two months. Same thing if you sell cultivated meat.
The debate around alternative proteins has become increasingly polarised in the US, with many policymakers trying to create a divide among partisan lines. Florida has banned companies from making or selling cultivated meat in its borders. From October, so too will Alabama.
That said, the White House and states like California and Illinois have been pouring in millions to support alternative proteins, signalling that not everyone finds a modern piece of chicken a threat to farmers, the economy, and the fabric of American society.
Massachusetts – home to Tufts University and its Center for Cellular Agriculture – is one of these proponents. In its new Economic Development Bill, passed last week, the Bay State has put its weight behind climate tech and alternative proteins.
“We feel that food science is going to be a big part of the future. And food science is not only good for the economy, it’s good for the climate, and it’s good for our health,” state Senator Barry Finegold, chairperson of the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies, tells Green Queen.
“We are looking at trying to help grow our companies and helping them with research, helping them with infrastructure, and helping them develop their products,” he adds.
“Massachusetts recognises the economic benefits of this sector, the enormous job creation potential, the climate benefits, and the ability for alternative proteins to help tackle food insecurity and a slew of individual and public health issues,” notes Noa Dalzell, state policy director at non-profit Food Solutions Action.
“The state has historically been at the forefront of emerging technologies and innovation, and this alternative protein investment signals it will continue to lead on the most critical new innovations in sustainability,” she says.
Massachusetts looks to be ‘food tech leader’ globally
As part of the Economic Development Bill (S.2856), the Massachusetts Senate is pledging $2.8B in funding, with grants for climate tech and adaptation finance for coastal municipalities. The House version of the bill (H. 4804) – passed in June – is effectively the same.
Alternative proteins appear thrice in the list of investments. First, there’s a $5M grant to local companies in support of developing these novel foods, who can apply for the funding via state VC firm MassVentures’ START programme. This involves the assistance of a Small Business Innovation Research or Small Business Technology Transfer grant from federal agencies like the USDA, the FDA or the National Science Foundation.
Another $5M is earmarked for the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech) – a public agency – to match grants that support alternative proteins among private entities, higher education institutes, NGOs, and other organisations in the state. These grants must be administered in alignment with the goals and priorities of the state’s manufacturing collaborative, and promote “geographic, social and economic equity”.
Finally, the government will pour in $115M for a competitive programme by MassTech, centred on infrastructure support to advance the state’s leadership and increase jobs in key emerging tech sectors. This includes developing alternative proteins – with the bill namechecking plant-based, fermented and cultivated foods – with “sensory characteristics that are consistent with conventional meat and dairy”.
“What we’re focused on right now is trying to encourage companies from all over the country to come here, and we feel that with our package, I think it’s very enticing for people to come to Massachusetts,” says Finegold.
When it comes to food tech, he adds that the state is looking “not only to be a leader in the United States, but also to be a leader around the world”. Countries like Singapore, Israel and now the UK have all made progress with regulatory approvals. And two companies have received clearance to sell cultivated meat in the US, and both are from California.
Meanwhile, as part of a $100M pledge, the Bezos Earth Fund opened a Center for Sustainable Protein in North Carolina State University in May to advance alternative protein research.
‘Lawmakers have to take science seriously’
Courtesy: Alonso Nichols/Tufts University
Massachusetts’ bill is a big vote of confidence for alternative proteins – particularly cultivated meat, which has been marred by dubious claims about being unnatural, unhealthy and even bad for the climate.
This industry needs a win, and Finegold’s recognition that it’s good for the economy, health and environment has delivered that.
I ask the Senator what he thinks about the bans in Florida and Alabama. “I’m not concerned about what other states are doing,” he said. “What I’m focused on is what Massachusetts is doing and I’m very proud that Massachusetts is a leader when it comes to trying to preserve the world, make a healthier society, and create economic opportunity for its people.”
Perhaps not surprisingly given the state of US politics today, he doesn’t believe support for alternative proteins is an issue that would sway a person to vote or not vote for someone. “I think it’s incumbent on us lawmakers to think long-term,” he says. “If we’re concerned about climate change, if we’re concerned about people’s health, then I think we have to take science seriously. And that’s what we’re doing here in Massachusetts.”
Does he believe these restrictions hinder consumer choice and climate action? “I was travelling yesterday. I was at the Delta Lounge and they had plant-based chicken, and I didn’t see anybody hesitating to eat that type of food. So I just think it takes time,” he responds.
“And I think Massachusetts has always been a leader in challenging thought, and getting people to change their behaviours, and how they think about things.”
Finegold said the final points of the bill are still being negotiated, but expects it to be finalised in the next few weeks. When asked about foreign investment and talent, he says the state is ready for “all businesses in food science and technology with open arms.”
“Massachusetts has always been an open state, and welcomes talent from all over the world to come here and work with our companies,” he adds. “Whether the companies decide to take investment from domestic or international, that’s ultimately up to them.”
US states ‘recognising’ the potential of alternative proteins
Courtesy: Green Queen
A recent poll showed that cultivated meat acceptance skews higher among Democrats than Republicans. With Donald Trump picking a climate sceptic in JD Vance as his running mate, how would the upcoming election affect this sector?
“Both Republican and Democratic administrations over the years have supported agencies conducting this research, and we’re grateful to have bipartisan support for this research area needed for a more secure food future,” Dalzell states.
“As you can see in this official statement, under President Trump, USDA secretary [Sonny] Perdue and FDA commissioner [Scott] Gottlieb expressed support for the proposed USDA/FDA framework of overseeing cultivated meat regulation.
Speaking at the IFT First trade event this week, Bruce Friedrich, president of alternative protein think tank the Good Food Institute, said he expects the cultivated meat bans in Florida and Alabama to be “quietly repealed”, at least “before they’re meaningful”. He labelled it as “no big loss”, as companies don’t need to sell in these states anytime soon.
But Nusa Urbancic, CEO of the Changing Markets Foundation, suggested otherwise in a chat with Green Queen: “I think the Big Ag has only got started when it comes to bans and restrictions on its competition. Without a very smart and well-resourced counteroffensive, the troubles for the alternative protein industry could continue.”
Dalzell believes it’s hard to gauge exactly where things are going to go. “But what I can say is that states across the country are recognising this is a sector that needs to be invested in because of both the economic potential and its ability to tackle a myriad of social issues,” she explains.
“Perhaps most importantly, because meat demand is projected to double over the next 25 years, states are recognising they need to invest in alternatives to complement existing protein forms.”
Cult Food Science subsidiary Further Foods will submit its design of feeding trials to the FDA later this month, in pursuit of regulatory approval for cultivated chicken for dogs.
Further Foods, a subsidiary of Canadian cellular agriculture platform Cult Food Science, is pursuing US regulatory clearance for cultivated pet food under the Noochies! brand.
The company will soon complete the design of the necessary feeding trials for the approval of dog treats containing cultivated chicken, and expects to submit the protocol to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) later this month.
Further Foods intends to begin the trials in Q4 once the FDA has approved its design. It hopes to receive the regulatory greenlight and launch its initial products early next year, Cult Food Science CEO Mitchell Scott told Green Queen.
How novel pet food feeding trials work
Courtesy: Andresr/Getty Images
In the US, novel pet food sits under the same regulatory umbrella as feed ingredients. This is overseen by the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine, which also works in partnership with the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO), an independent non-profit that sets standards for these ingredients in the US.
One of the ways to ensure that new ingredients are nutritionally adequate, safe and healthy for animals is to undertake feeding trials using guidelines designed by AAFCO.
Since the cultivated chicken in dog treats is a new ingredient without prior approval, Further Foods has partnered with veterinarian Dr Sarah Dodd to design a target animal safety (TAS) study. The goal is to establish that including cultivated chicken in future Noochies! formulations is safe and effective.
Once it submits the design protocol to the FDA, the federal regulator will respond within 45 days. “The next step after receiving feedback on our feeding trial design from the FDA will be to undertake the feeding trials,” said Scott.
The TAS study is designed to provide evidence that cultivated chicken is safe and useful for its intended purpose as a complementary source of protein in dog food. Under AAFCO guidelines, “adult maintenance” studies must include a minimum of eight dogs aged at least one, and the trial must last 26 weeks.
Further Foods’ design includes 30 healthy, adult dogs of different breeds and ages, who will either receive a control dose, test dose or high inclusion dose for the 26-week period. Among the parameters monitored are feed intake data, haematology, serum biochemistry, urinalysis, weight, faecal analysis, and digestibility factors.
If it meets the criteria – which state that there should be no signs of nutritional deficiency or toxicity, and the group average shouldn’t lose more than 10% of body weight, among others – then the food is classed as “complete and balanced”.
“There will be some additional work required after the approval, some of it can be done in parallel with the feeding trial,” said Scott.
Noochies! cultivated dog treats to cost the same as premium pet food
Courtesy: Veronika Dvorakova
Cult Food Science claims Further Foods is the only company in consultation with the FDA about feeding trials for cultivated chicken dog treats.
“We believe that the implications of a successful trial could change the landscape of pet food as a whole,” Scott said in a statement. “The regulatory pathways have yet to be successfully navigated and as a result, this is not currently an option in North America. We are seeking to be a first mover in changing that and look forward to advancing this trial with Dr Sarah Dodd and the FDA.”
Dodd is part of the founding team of Friends & Family Pet Food Co., another cultivated pet food company that is currently developing white fish for cats with Umami Bioworks. Asked if there was any conflict of interest, Scott said: “My understanding is that Dr Dodd is involved with a large number of different pet-related companies.”
The cultivated dog treats will usher in a new era for Noochies!, which was launched by former Cult Food Science VP Joshua Errett (who is also a co-founder of Friends & Family) in 2019. It produces vegan dog and cat snacks using Cult Food Science’s patented Bmmune ingredient, a blend of nutritional yeast and fermented fungi.
In May, the parent company raised CAD$800,000 ($584,000) to expand the Noochies! lineup. “We are currently building out our sales and distribution network with the Noochies! line of vegan treats and plan on launching the cultivated products into that network,” confirmed Scott.
The cultivated dog treats will also contain the “proprietary blend of bioactive fermentation ingredients and nutritional yeast (Bmmune)” that can be found in the current vegan range. Further Foods is targeting an omnichannel approach instead of focusing purely on B2B or B2C, with Scott describing it as the “most effective way to build and scale a brand”.
“For the current Noochies line, we are able to scale quickly to meet demand and have no production constraints,” he said when asked about the cost and manufacturing challenges. “For this new line of products, we expect to be both profitable and priced in line with other premium alternatives from the outset.”
Cult Food Science’s announcement culminates what has been a seminal week for the cultivated pet food industry. On Wednesday, London-based Meatly announced it had received the regulatory go-ahead in the UK, a first for cultivated meat in Europe and for pet food globally. It aims to start selling cultivated chicken for dogs by the end of the year.
