The herbal meat industry is growing, but challenges remain

SINGAPORE – Demand for meat alternatives has grown and will continue to grow, but the industry still has obstacles to overcome in different parts of the world, analysts said.

Global search interest for the term “herbal meat” increased in early 2019, ahead of the initial Beyond Meat public offering, according to Google Trends.

The global meat substitute sector is worth $ 20.7 billion and is set to grow to $ 23.2 billion by 2024, market research firm Euromonitor told CNBC.

This growth is fueled by concerns, from animal welfare to food security and the Covid-19 pandemic.

“In this age of shocks and instability, building a low-risk value chain means focusing on opportunities, and the shift to herbal meat shows no signs of slowing down,” said Elaine Siu, executive director of The Good Food Institute Asia Pacific .

But obstacles remain for the booming market.

The Asian herbal meat market may be limited by established perceptual issues, Siu said.

For example, fake or vegetarian meat was previously eaten by Chinese Buddhists, she said.

“Replication of meat taste and texture has never been surpassed to a relatively basic level,” she said, adding that these traditional products have a specific purpose and “their appeal is seen as limited” to certain groups.

“For herbal meat to reach the potential of the Asian market, the sector must continue to free itself from its association with traditional counterfeit meat, which is expected to be sold at a low price and carry historical image baggage.” said Siu.

Cattle farmers could also stand in the way of the alternative protein sector, especially in the US, said Simon Powell, global head of thematic research at the US bank Jefferies.

The US Cattlemen’s Association filed a petition in 2018 calling for a formal definition of the terms “beef” and “meat” in an attempt to keep herbal proteins out of the description.

“Incumbent producers will put pressure on their governments to change labeling, to mess with consumer advertising, saying you can’t call it meat,” Powell told CNBC via Zoom. “I think that’s one of the biggest barriers.”

In October, the European Union rejected proposals to ban restaurants and shops from using words such as sausages or burgers when describing meat alternatives.

Powell added that if any of the meat companies had a “kind of accident” or a problem with their recipe, it would result in a “massive recall” that could make customers fear consuming these alternatives.

“This is a big ‘if’ … but if it had a great memory of the product, then this could affect consumer confidence,” he said. “At some point, you will get these events. That will restore the industry a little bit.”

Separately, Powell said the “Instagrammability” of herbal foods is one of the reasons the market is growing “all over the world.” Market growth could be hampered if the novelty of meat alternatives disappears or disappears, he said.