Gone are the days when consumers can only eat meat from animals. Now, the emerging trend of plant-based food is going above and beyond market shares. As the younger generations seek sustainability amid food crisis, plant-based meat, milk, and cellular-based seafood are on the rise.

Make room for plant-based foods on your supermarket shelves because it isn’t going anywhere this 2020 and beyond.

Meatless Meat

Plant-based meat was invented to address the greatest environmental threat which is the dreadful impact of the use of animals on food tech on the global environment. Beyond Meat and Impossible Burger are the pioneering manufacturers of plant-based meat that have greatly disrupted the food-retail industry in the last few years, and it is now sold to over 10,000 restaurants across the US.

By 2030, the market for plant-based meat is projected to be worth $85 billion and it doesn’t stop there. The growing generation of flexitarians (people who follow a semi-vegetarian diet, eat plant-based food while eating meat occasionally) drive the demand for plant-based meat in the market — roughly one-third of Americans, or 100 million people, follow a flexitarian diet.

Milk Substitutes

Plant-based milk such as almond, soy, and oat milk are some of the most common milk substitutes that are currently available in grocery stores today. The market for plant-based milk is estimated to be worth $14 billion and sales have grown as much as 11% as of 2019 while sales of traditional cow milk have significantly dropped about $1.1 billion over the past year.

As it turns out, people are willing to pay nearly twice as much for plant-based milk since they believe it is much healthier, sustainable, and delicious.

Cellular-based Seafood

Yes, you read that right, “Cellular-based Seafood”. It may sound odd to you but it’s a novel approach to seafood and is currently creating a buzz in the industry. Through cellular aquaculture, scientists have discovered a way to grow fish from cellular culture – producing real seafood products directly from fish cells. BlueNalu, the pioneering company promoting cellular aquaculture, just raised $20 million in funding to produce cell-based fish for a test market in 2021 and is planning to scale it after successful initial adoption.

Factors such as consumer mindfulness, the trend towards cruelty-free products, and the growing population are raising the demand to bring plant-based products in the market. It may take a few years before these products permanently hit the shelves but it’s worth acknowledging that plant-based is the future of sustainable food.