According to Euromonitor, [MN1] global retail sales of plant-based
meat in 2022 were $6.1 billion, and grew from prior year by both dollar sales (+8%) and weight sales (+5%), with the biggest growth in Latin America and Europe. The Good Food Institute points out that “recent headlines have characterized plant-based meat sales as declining. While this is accurate in the short-term in the United States—in 2022, dollar sales declined slightly (1%) and unit sales declined 8% compared to prior year, the longer-term picture is different. In the last three years, dollar sales grew 43% and unit sales grew 20%”.¹ Looking at the innovation and growth in the meat and fish analogue sector reveals a rich catalogue of new sources from soy, legumes and grains to seaweed, mushrooms and microbial proteins. New and advancing technologies including cultured meat, 3D printing and cellular agriculture are gaining momentum. This is propelled not only by the move towards plant-based diets, but also by the increasing urgency of developing more sustainable food systems that will deliver viable sources of protein for the future. Meat production is a major contributor to all greenhouse gases ² and the World Wildlife Fund confirms that “overfishing can impact entire
ecosystems”.³

According to Mintel, the primary barrier to consumption of plant-based
foods in the US is taste⁴Consumer research experts FMCG Gurus concur: “Consumers should not feel like they have to make a compromise or sacrifice when turning to meat substitutes in the long term,” noting that globally, 82% of consumers state that it is important that plant-based products taste the same as real meat; 75% say it’s important that the texture is the same.⁵

In this webinar we will look at how this sector is evolving and specifically at the question: how do we create plant-based meat and fish alternatives that have the taste and texture to rival their traditional counterparts?