Can plant-based meat move beyond the hype to become a viable alternative that helps our ailing planet? All the signs point to a resounding yes
The Impossible Burger is well named. An entirely vegetarian patty dreamed up by the brains in Silicon Valley rather than the brawn of a Texas farm, it has been applauded for its ‘impossibly’ realistic taste and texture—right down to the bloody, metallic aftertaste that has made it a friend to carnivores around the world.
Fake meat is everywhere. As we all wake up to the impact our meat-heavy diets are having on the planet, not to mention our waistlines, people are becoming vegetarian, flexitarian, pescatarian, vegan, or even just more meat-conscious in their droves.
One look at the statistics should have you shunning steak tartare for life. A study by the University of Oxford found that if we want to keep global warming below the two degrees celcius increase the UN has warned will be deadly for every inhabitant on this planet, we all need to be eating 75 percent less beef and 90 percent less pork.
But what happens if you really, really like bacon? Or if your diet is a fundamental part of your culture: chicken soup when you’re sick, turkey at Christmas and roast beef for Sunday lunch? Enter the world of fake meat, which can help ease the transition into a vegetarianism for millions of people who are doing it for moral rather than taste-based reasons.
Meat substitutes have existed for centuries. In the past, those too poor to buy meat would simply create the illusion of it instead, so aubergine puree for caviar in 19th century Russia, beef from mushrooms in revolutionary France and ‘sausage’ made of leeks in World War II Britain. More recently, Quorn—a fake meat made from mycoprotein—was launched in the 1980s, but has long been a byword for bland, flavourless food.
But scientists in California have helped create the first meat substitute that doesn’t taste too far off the real thing. Impossible Foods—the inventor of that famous burger—has pioneered a bioengineering process that uses a molecule known as ‘heme’ to give meat-free meat the slightly metallic flavour it is usually lacking, and even a distinctive ‘blood’ colouring.
And then there is Los Angeles-based Beyond Meat, which has seen its popularity skyrocket by almost 700 percent over the last year and a 'white hot' IPO earlier this year. Today, its plant-based burgers, ground beef, sausages and bacon are sold in more than 30,000 supermarkets and restaurants globally.
Phuture Food, meanwhile, is creating pork substitutes for Asian consumers. This Malaysian startup has turned the focus away from beef towards pork, which plays a more important role in the Asian diet. Using plants such as wheat, shiitake mushrooms and mung beans to mimic the texture and flavour of pork, the company is hoping to take the environmental strain off population growth in countries such as Malaysia and China.