Bruce Friedrich, a vegan for nearly four decades and head of the Good Food Institute, argues that the only way to tackle the global damage caused by industrial livestock is to replace meat with like-for-like alternatives such as cultivated and plant-based meat. In his new book, 'Meat', Friedrich acknowledges that meat is 'humanity’s favourite food', with a biological appeal rooted in dense calories and umami flavour that humans have evolved to crave.
Friedrich notes that despite decades of efforts by environmentalists, health experts and animal advocates, global meat consumption has risen every year since 1961. He contends that a decline has never occurred in human history, making it unlikely to happen now. Instead, he advocates for replacing conventional meat with products that match its taste and price, produced in brewery-like factories or from plants.
Friedrich compares alternative proteins to electric vehicles, stating that just as cars no longer need combustion engines, meat can be made without live animals. He is convinced that if plant-based or cultivated meat does not reach price and taste parity, it will be due to a lack of will, not scientific feasibility. Analysts at McKinsey, Barclays and Credit Suisse estimate that such products could capture a 50% market share by mid-century.
To achieve this, Friedrich calls for government support similar to that provided for previous transformative technologies like penicillin, the internet and renewable energy. He suggests that if China or a major tech company like Google or Microsoft fully committed, conventional meat could be all but history by 2050. Friedrich believes rapid acceleration will occur once price and taste parity is reached, potentially within a decade.
Friedrich estimates that replacing 15% of conventional meat and dairy with alternative proteins could reduce greenhouse emissions by as much as replacing all fossil-fuelled cars, buses and light trucks with EVs, especially if freed-up land is reforested or rewilded. He describes industrial agriculture as 'a shockingly inefficient way of producing food', noting that it takes nine calories of crops to produce one calorie of chicken, and far more for pig meat or farmed fish.
