The global meat market is currently worth $1.3 trillion and over the next decade, the alternative meat market is predicted to take 10 per cent of that reaching a value of $140 billion, according to Barclays latest report.
A leading figure within this burgeoning industry, Sunfed Founder and CEO Shama Sukul Lee, today presented a convincing case for the potential of plant-based protein to turn our current food system on its head, during her keynote address at the third and final day of Melbourne’s inaugural Global Table conference.
“It’s important to look at food as an energy problem”, said Lee, a software engineer turned food technology entrepreneur. “Food is just another form of energy that we consume on this planet and actually, the largest form of energy with the biggest footprint. Animal proteins make up a really large chunk of that food footprint.”
Lee explained animals are fundamentally inefficient manufacturers of protein as they will always produce less than what they consume, therefore creating a negative, unsustainable system.
“Animal systems are damaging our fundamental resources – soil, water and air. It is now the biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, the key polluter of waterways, and the number one reason for the deforestation of the Amazon”, she warned.
Lee cautioned that this negative system is not selective, with livestock disease outbreaks like avian flu, food safety risks, public health issues and scarcity of water presenting commercial risks for the meat and dairy industry.
Sunfed is Lee’s plant-based protein company that’s created chicken-free chicken using yellow peas as its key ingredient. Lee boasts the product contains twice the amount of protein as chicken and cooks, feels and tastes just like the real thing, offering the mainstream consumer a true meaty experience without the ethical and health issues associated with meat.
“Plants are fundamentally more cost-efficient and cost-effective. You don’t have all the costs of raising an animal and managing animal risks.”
Through Sunfed, Lee is committed to creating a highly scalable, regenerative system that will flip the current food industry on its head and leave the environment better than they found it.
With forecasts that the alternative protein market is set to boom over the next decade, Lee is confident that the possibilities in the next five years alone are huge.
“We are continuously iterating and improving our products, so the meaty experience will only just keep getting better and better and at a rapid pace.
“This is why it’s a game changer.”
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