In 2022 we reached the mark of 8 billion people on Earth and the forecast for 2050 is to shelter 10 billion. Along with this number, there is a concern: how to feed all these people and reduce the impacts on the environment?
This necessarily involves reframe the way we have been feeding ourselves in the last centuries . And diets and products plant-based have been great allies in this challenge and gained space on shelves and refrigerators in homes around the world.
What is plant-based
The term plant-based, if literally translated, means “based on plants”, but, contrary to what the name suggests, whoever adopts a plant-based diet doesn’t just eat plants. In fact, it is a diet focused on the intake of natural and whole foods, including fruits, vegetables, legumes, beans, nuts, seeds, among others.
already the plant-based products are those that recreate, from 100% vegetable ingredients, the texture, color and flavor of foods of animal origin, such as hamburgers, sausages and sausages made from soy, peas, beans, chickpeas, among others. others.
Brazil in the plant-based context
According to a Bloomberg Intelligence report, the main plant-based consumer country is the United States, followed by Germany, France and the United Kingdom.
In the future, according to Bloomberg Intelligence, the main region that will drive the plant-based market is Asia, due to the increase in the local population, which could reach $4.6 billion in 2030.
At Latin America O Brazil is one of the main players of the market, followed by Mexico, Chile and Argentina, which have 20%, 14% and 12% of vegetarians in their population, respectively.
A survey carried out by The Good Food Institute Brazil (GFI Brazil) indicated that the consumption of beef, pork, chicken and fish fell 67% among Brazilians in its last survey conducted in 2022 compared to the previous year.
The same survey also noted that of consumers who reduced meat in their diet, 47% intend to reduce even more in 2023 . Today, four out of ten people claim to consume plant-based alternatives to animal products at least three times a week.
The increase in the price of meat is indicated by 45% of Brazilians who have reduced meat consumption in the last 12 months as the main isolated reason for this reduction, and it is a stronger motivation among the C class and in the Midwest region.
However, a large portion of consumers (36%) claim to have limited their meat intake for health-related reasons and a search for healthier habits, with the intention of solving specific problems (such as high cholesterol, poor digestion and overweight) and also to improve health in general.
Vegetables (such as vegetables and grains) are still the main alternative for those who reduce meat consumption, but the vegetable meat has also been gaining ground: in 2020, 47% of Brazilians who reduced their consumption of animal meat switched exclusively to vegetables.
Today, this percentage has dropped to 35%, and vegetable meat, which was previously the main substitute for only 6% of consumers, has had a significant increase and has become the main alternative for 17% of Brazilians who reduced animal meat on their plate.
Some – large numbers – from the plant-based market
Research led by Bloomberg Intelligence shows that the world market for plant-based products is expected to grow from US$ 29.4 billion in 2020 to US$ 162 billion (approximately R$ 847.9 billion) in 2030, which corresponds to 7.7% of the world protein market. The study also pointed out that, by the end of this decade, the global herbal market could grow up to five times.
Large companies are responding to this growing consumer demand in Brazil. JBS, a giant in the meat sector, launched in 2019 a completely plant-based line, Incrível Seara. The company still bought for 341 million euros, in 2021, Vivera, a European manufacturer of herbal products based in the Netherlands.
Fazenda do Futuro, a national startup and plant-based market leader in Brazil, is already present in more than 30 countries and was valued at BRL 2.2 billion. NotCo, foodtech company that produces plant-based alternatives to food products of animal origin, received at the end of last year US$ 70 million (approximately R$ 367 million) in a new round of investment.
THIS, a British alternative meat brand, raised 15 million euros at the beginning of the year in a round of investment and seeks international expansion. The company’s annual turnover has now reached €24m and it was recently named the UK’s fastest growing food and drink brand by financial services company Alantra.
Source: CNN Brasil
Johanna Foster is an expert opinion writer with over 7 years of experience. She has a reputation for delivering insightful and thought-provoking articles on a variety of subjects. Her work can be found on some of the top online news websites, and she is currently lending her voice to the world stock market.
