We like to joke that we buy meat sausages in the store, in which there is practically no meat. Manufacturers print the words "more meat", "meaty", etc. in large letters on their product labels. Until now, any meat substitutes were negatively evaluated, but today the situation is changing: sausages without meat can be no less tastier, healthier, friendlier to the environment and animals, and although strange - even several times more expensive. However, the price is already falling, as the production volume of meat alternatives increases, making them more expensive. Many companies want to achieve the same or even lower prices than animal meat products.
And in Lithuania we can already buy alternative meat products made from plant proteins. It looks like we are eating meat, but it is made from wheat, barley or soy using modern technology. The number of users of such products in the world is increasing rapidly every year, and hundreds of millions are invested in the companies that produce them.
Meat substitutes produced using modern technologies solve many problems: human food supply, food safety, environmental protection, animal welfare.
For many, plant-based meat substitutes are associated with patties for frying hamburgers, but the market is developing very rapidly and can offer more and more interesting forms of plant-based meat: little different from medium-roasted beef, crispy chicken, smoked sausages, fish fillets. If you don't know what you are eating, today you can hardly tell the difference between plant-based and real meat.
We still talk about plant-based meat substitutes as the food of the future, because we are a country with a strong meat processing industry, and we consume much more meat than the average European.
However, the future is not as far as it seems: we can already buy plant-based meat in Lithuanian stores, and it is possible that soon we will have a protein factory for the production of meat substitutes in Lithuania.
Impressive growth
The global vegetable protein market has grown exponentially over the past decade and is expected to grow by 2021. reached approximately 5.6 billion The value of EUR. It is predicted that this sector will grow twice in the next five years.
Market participants predict that by 2035 in total, alternative proteins will account for 11% of total protein consumption, and with the help of technology, investors and regulators, alternative proteins could capture about 22% of the global market during this period.
Last year, the growth of the sector decreased, due to the economic and political circumstances, a decline in the global market was observed. However, investor surveys show great optimism that the production of meat substitutes will take an increasing share of the food market.
In the market today, we can already see two large groups of players.
First of all, these are startups that invest heavily in research, looking for ways to make plant-based meat as close as possible to the real thing. Only in 2021 they raised over 8 billion investments. The second group consists of large food industry companies that invest in or buy meat substitute start-ups.
Do you think that only vegans, vegetarians, raw foodists choose these and similar products? This is a myth. Many people around the world are looking to non-meat proteins due to the realization of the huge environmental impact of the meat industry. During a survey of buyers in the USA, it was found that those who buy plant-based meat also add animal meat to the shopping cart.
Solves important problems
There are many ways to calculate the proportion of greenhouse gases that the meat industry is responsible for. Here, The Guardian estimates that cattle farming, feed production, logistics, etc. are responsible for almost 60% of water, soil and air pollution.
The food industry is responsible for 26% of current global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Livestock, the largest emitter of GHGs in the food production chain, emits 15% of all greenhouse gases generated globally.
Alternative meat products on average generate 90% less CO2 and use 99% less land and water. A BCG/Blue Horizon study showed that investments in alternatives to meat, milk and fish reduce CO2 emissions 3 times more than investments in alternatives to other polluting industries (cement, steel and iron, chemicals, transport).
The global plant-based meat market is expected to grow primarily due to increasing public awareness of the negative environmental impact of meat consumption. Many people voluntarily choose not to use or consume any animal products in order to contribute to the environment.
Skeptics of this business sector like to repeat that the production of vegetable proteins will further accelerate deforestation, will force an increase in the cultivation areas of soy or other plants used in production, but they keep silent about one very important truth - the majority of the raw materials of crop production are consumed precisely for animal food.
The production of plant proteins is also crucial to ensure a smooth food supply. Countries that do not have very large areas suitable for agriculture and do not develop animal husbandry can also produce this product. The Covid-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, various energy challenges have disrupted the global food supply chain, so this issue is more important than ever.
In order to promote the production of alternative proteins, states also play a very important role. Singapore, Israel, Canada, the USA, the Netherlands and even China are allocating hundreds of millions to promote this sector. The leaders of these countries are well aware that the production of alternative food products is crucial to ensure a smooth food supply in order to achieve the goals of climate change mitigation.
The meat industry is not blind
The big western meat processors have already realized that the opposition between plant-based and real meat makes no sense.
It would be logical to assume that traditional meat industry companies are not very happy with the success of meat substitute manufacturers, but instead of getting involved in the competitive battle, they recognize that plant-based proteins are the inevitable future and are starting to take leadership in this sector themselves.
With the development of technology, the attitude towards plant-based meat has changed fundamentally. Obviously, all the world's major meat processing companies have also changed their approach, as they have started to increase the share of vegetable production in their production baskets every year.
Tyson Foods, one of the largest meat retailers in the world, recently added plant-based burger patties to its product portfolio.
In addition, the company previously invested in US plant-based burger company Beyond Meat and backed two lab-based meat companies, as well as US-based Upside foods and Future Meat Technologies.
Industry giants interested in meat substitutes abound: Cargill, BRF, Marfrig, Maple Leaf Foods, Nestle, Unilever, JBS, etc.
Of course, the big companies want everything here and now, their products, although cheaper, still lag behind those produced by companies that invest in scientific research and technology in both appearance and taste.
On the other hand, large companies are very shrewd in this market and instead of investing in research, they buy or support meat substitute start-ups. As a result, consumers can expect that in a few years the most advanced food products will become more affordable.
Opportunities for Lithuania
As I mentioned, the most advanced countries in the world generously promote the production of meat substitutes, so Lithuania should also keep up.
Information appeared in the media some time ago that the Irish company "ClonBio" plans to invest 200-250 million in a factory of concentrated vegetable proteins for the production of meat substitutes in the Akmene free economic zone in Lithuania. EUR, to create 150-200 new jobs.
It is reported that we are still competing with the US, Canada for this plant. If we manage to attract the investment, we could become a regional FoodTech center. A successful investment, I have no doubt, would attract more similar companies. It would also contribute to the creation of infrastructure for alternative protein research and specialist training.
It is obvious that the business environment for such a company in Lithuania is ideal: we grow several times more grain than we need, we are a country with fertile land, we have excellent food industry specialists.
Lithuania is one of the largest grain producers in Europe. Since we grow twice as much grain as we are able to process in the local market, we export most of it as raw material.
We export, even though we could process grains into modern products in Lithuania, creating much higher added value.
The barley that the new processing plant would use in the production of its meat substitutes is currently not grown in Lithuania, as most of the farmers' harvest consists of wheat, which is more expensive and easier to sell in many world markets.
ClonBio and other similar investments would encourage the country's farmers to increase crop rotation and expand the areas of less frequently cultivated crops. Naturally, consumers would also have a greater choice of plant-based products. Virtually all protein-rich plant materials can be turned into healthy, modern foods.
Lithuanian habits are changing
Surveys show that over the past few years, even 30% of the continent's population have reduced their consumption of meat and dairy products.
Lithuanians should also appreciate plant-based meat soon. A survey initiated by "Gyvi gali" showed that a third of Lithuanians tried to refuse to eat meat or to reduce its amount in their diet in the last few years.
In Lithuania, only 8.2% inhabitants classify themselves as alternative eaters - flexitarians, pescetarians, vegetarians and vegans. In comparison, the European average is around 30%. Nevertheless, changes in nutrition are noticeable.
If these trends continue, in a decade our food consumption habits will be no different from Western countries, and we will see plant products on our plates much more often.
Lithuanians consume about 101 kg of meat every year - three times more than recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).
The European Union has set an ambitious goal - by 2050. ensure climate neutrality. Without reducing the consumption of animal meat, these goals will not be achieved. The development of the alternative protein sector is one of the most effective ways to reduce the negative impact on the environment.
The text was prepared by: Tomas Byčkova, co-founder of VšĮ "Gyvi gali".
