Last week's results from fake-meat maker Beyond Meat were another reminder that plant-based "meat" is rapidly becoming this generation's Sinclair C5 - something that might look like a good idea on paper, but also something that nobody really wants.
The company's own results show it is losing ground, with sales volumes dropping in key markets. Consumer data also shows what little appetite there might have existed for fake meat is already waning.
A survey of 1,000 consumers conducted by plant-based frozen food company Strong Roots found that 40% of consumers are axing fake meat products from their shopping lists. The survey found the biggest problem consumers have with the products are the taste, concerns about artificial additives and worries about the amount of processing required.
The survey also found that consumers are increasingly looking for information about the carbon footprint of what they purchase. With the environmental credentials of fake meat being increasingly found wanting in studies of its impact, the product is also likely to be unattractive on that metric.
Overall, both the survey and Beyond Meat's actual results point to the same thing: fake meat is a product without a sustainable market.
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Last week's results from fake-meat maker Beyond Meat were another reminder that plant-based "meat" is rapidly becoming this generation's Sinclair C5 - something that might look like a good idea on paper, but also something that nobody really wants.
The company's own results show it is losing ground, with sales volumes dropping in key markets. Consumer data also shows what little appetite there might have existed for fake meat is already waning.
A survey of 1,000 consumers conducted by plant-based frozen food company Strong Roots found that 40% of consumers are axing fake meat products from their shopping lists. The survey found the biggest problem consumers have with the products are the taste, concerns about artificial additives and worries about the amount of processing required.
The survey also found that consumers are increasingly looking for information about the carbon footprint of what they purchase. With the environmental credentials of fake meat being increasingly found wanting in studies of its impact, the product is also likely to be unattractive on that metric.
Overall, both the survey and Beyond Meat's actual results point to the same thing: fake meat is a product without a sustainable market.
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