Manufactured Proteins and Their Impact on the Food Supply Chain
OVERVIEW The world is changing. The way we eat is changing. The trend towards meatless “meat” products is just beginning. Along with this new trend are arguments about health, safety, consumer acceptance and many environmental issues focused on critical environmental issues. There are claims, based on recently published research, that the beef and dairy industries will undergo significant shrinkage over the next 10 or 15 years. Environmental and economic issues including land use, green house gas emissions, deforestation, water consumption, costs of beef and dairy products, nutrition, jobs (old ones lost and new ones developed), supply chain changes away from decentralization, export reduction, and other factors will lead to the disruption of food and agriculture in a way not seen before. Consumer choices based on increasing identification of climate change and pollution are expected to help fuel the new industry’s growth along with investor speculation. The new trends howe...