Red meat industry strikes a synthetic meat ‘crossroads’
The red meat industry is at an important crossroads in how it deals with consumer resistance to meat from animals and increasing competition from the public perception of healthy, ethical alternatives of plant-based protein and synthetic meats.
Dr Michael Lee, a senior lecturer in marketing at the University of Auckland, told farmers they were at a junction at a red meat sector conference in Dunedin. Lee’s research in anticonsumption and consumer resistance trends offered some clear warnings for the meat industry over alternative sources of protein and identified opportunities for New Zealand to lead the world in the production of high value, natural meat products.
People loved the taste of meat, a highly nutritious natural protein that tasted great, but there were alternative forms of plant-based and synthetic meat made to look and taste like meat, he said.
Dr Lee said consumer resistance to the ethics of eating protein from animals killed for their meat had opened the door for competitors offering healthy alternatives.
New Zealand was renowned for its natural production of red meat, but perception was reality and opinions mattered more than facts. ‘‘The bigger the brand, the bigger the bull’s eye target on your back,’’ he said.
The ethical argument that no animal was harmed in the making of synthetic meat - which takes tissue from a live animal and then grows it on in the laboratory - may appeal to vegetarians.
Vegan butcheries were making plant-based protein products that fetched premium prices and offered recipes on how to use their products. Environmental organisations argued that it was better to harvest protein from fish or insects, which were more efficient at converting feed costs into edible protein than livestock.
Two billion people around the world already relied on insects for protein, Lee said. In Germany the Ministry for the Environment had banned meat from all official functions. ‘‘If that is not a warning bell I don’t know what is.’’
However, it was not all bad news for the meat industry, which had reached a crossroads, he said. The New Zealand meat industry had the opportunity to become a champion of high value, natural meat products rather than high volume meat production from large industrialised feedlots. ‘‘Wouldn’t it be fantastic if consumers ate our meat because it is healthier, because it is tastier, because it represents a lifestyle and image and because it does the least possible damage to the environment compared to anyone else,’’ Lee said.