Page 28 - Food&Drink magazine April 2022

ALTERNATIVE PROTEINS
WHETHER it’s for cost or health, animal welfare or environment, the numbers are clear; Australians are reducing their meat consumption.
According to IBISWorld,
since 2019, Australian beef consumption per capita is
down 17.5 per cent and total meat consumption has slipped by 6.5 per cent while plant-based meat alternatives (PBMA) have soared.
IS THE WRITING ON
THE WALL?
Not necessarily. While there is great debate around the cause of this decline, there is no singular smoking gun. In fact, it’s quite likely that the factors leading to the shift in domestic meat consumption have little to do with the factors that have seen the growth in plant-based meat alternatives. A little digging shows it’s clearly not an apples to apples comparison.
For example, the dominant protein of choice for the “Australian family” has undeniably shifted – but from lamb and beef to chicken (pork is also giving it a red-hot crack). From a global perspective, as wealth increases, so does the appetite and budget for meat consumption. Simply put, the demise of meat as a staple is not imminent.
In the $18 billion Australian red meat industry, there’s a lot at stake. But as we’ve learnt from the great Uber-taxi debacle, competition driven by changing consumer needs is inevitable. Those in industry who are progressively minded are embracing this opportunity.
Rather than adversaries vying for the same attention of consumers, there’s much these two industries can learn from each other.
Through decades of innovation the meat processing industry has learnt lessons that can provide great value to alternative proteins. When it comes to adopting value-add technology, cold chain management and automation, traditional processors are the experts.
On the other hand, alternative proteins have much to teach the meat industry about embracing consumer demand.
TECHNOLOGY HAS COME LEAPS AND BOUNDS
In recent years, the meat sector has worked hard modernising and innovating to remain globally competitive.
The industry has learnt how to apply emerging innovations, use data to identify opportunities, and build business cases around new technology. The resultant landscape of the meat processor and their supply chain is one that lends itself to new proteins.
Let’s look at requirements. New plant-based proteins need to: be processed in high hygiene environments; have value added; be packaged, chilled or frozen; access the cold chain; understand retailer requirements; successfully navigate export markets; and be marketed to consumers. Sound familiar?
With all of that in mind, who better to bring scale and quality to market for these products than the existing meat players?
It makes business sense to invest in this new sector where processors leverage their existing operations and capitalise on the new market opportunities.
VALUE-ADDING ADDS TO THE BOTTOM LINE
In the Australian economic landscape, the opportunity for growth in revenue lies firmly in value adding. The Australian Farmers Federation says agricultural and food output could top $100 billion annually.
Given the domestic Australian market couldn’t feasibly consume that volume, we have three choices: grow more and export it; increase baseline agricultural output by adding value; or a combination of both.
While the grow-and-export route is popular, there are challenges in efficiencies, competition and scaling. Value-adding, by comparison, requires less demand on growth and can service both domestic and export markets.
Selling beef to the world’s growing middle class exposes Australia to competition from suppliers like India and Brazil and all the challenges and market fluctuations that entails.
Selling unique, new, price competitive meat analogues is
When old + new = better
When it comes to choosing traditional or
alternative proteins, Wiley chief future officer Brett Wiskar makes the case for choosing a bit of both for a better future.
28 | Food&Drink business | April 2022 | www.foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au