Sustainable Food Production: Plant-Based Alternatives and Lab-Grown Meat

By 2030, it is estimated that the global market for plant-based food substitutes will reach US $85 billion, up from US $4.6 billion in 2018. Cell-based meat is not yet commercially available, but one think tank estimates that demands for beef and dairy products will shrink by 80–90% in the US by 2035, largely in part due to plant-based substitutes and cell-based meats being cheaper than existing animal protein. These figures, whilst they are from one source, demonstrate how disruptive meat alternatives may be within the agricultural industry.

The negative effects on public health and animal welfare, along with the impacts of industrial food animal production has been well researched. However, there has been little research on the impact of plant-based alternatives and lab-grown meat on nutrition, chronic disease, and food safety implications. Consumption and availability of plant-based alternatives has increased vastly over the last few years. This can perhaps be attributed to greater understanding of the impact of consuming excessive red and processed meat on certain chronic diseases and early mortality.

As an investor in plant-based food companies, including: JUST Egg and ALOHA, I value companies that are working to provide quality, innovative plant-based alternatives. JUST identifies plants that make healthy and sustainable foods that are as tasty as their animal counterparts. For example, JUST Egg can be used as the traditional egg, in a scramble, omelette or in baking. The success of the JUST products proves that their innovative products have mass consumer appeal.

A balanced diet is essential for health and environmental reasons and for ensuring food security and stability. The shift towards more diverse food intake is vital and protecting our food system will require industry-wide collaboration from food processing and service industries, producers, and consumers. It will not be a simple case of replacing one animal product with a lab-grown or plant-based alternative — we will need our food consumption to be characterised by balance. I am excited to see the growth in plant-based food market, and particularly the work of my innovative portfolio companies JUST and ALOHA.