2025-04-24 06:59:09
The future is now
Fermentation and the bioreactors that make it possible are the hot topic of the moment in meat alternatives, but McKinsey and Co. makes a compelling case for the technology to represent the backbone of the alt-meat sector in the future.
In its report, “Ingredients for the future: Bringing the biotech revolution to food,” the consulting firm calculates that the potential market for precision and biomass fermented-protein products is expected to be between about $100 billion to $140 billion by 2050, or about 4% of the total protein market. (Note: That total includes all proteins, not just meat analogues.)
Fermentation promises a host of advantages over conventional proteins: Insulation from feed prices, climate change and disease, and a fraction of the environmental foodprint of animal proteins, making it a powerful option for building greater food security.
The hitch (there’s always a hitch) is the yawning chasm between demand and fermentation capacity.
To meet the need for proteins produced by fermentation, McKinsey identifies three areas in which investors should put their money now: Process improvements and redesigned bioreactors that would boost yield while driving down costs; innovative formulation and food design aimed at a wider variety of offerings that deliver on consumers’ demand for taste and texture; and new business models to help mitigate risk and attract the more than $250 billion McKinsey calculates is needed to scale up the sector’s infrastructure adequately.
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THE FUTURE IS NOW
https://library.alt-meat.net/articles/the-future-is-now