Ever since the dawn of civilization, our ancestors have been eating meat as the main source of protein and sustenance. Who could blame our ancestors for eating meat when it’s known for being one of the most abundant sources of protein in the wilds? Not only is meat a great source of protein, but the number of fats and calories that meat has can also keep people warm throughout some of the most frigid winter seasons.
As thousands of years pass, meat is still a widely prized source of food and commodity in various cultures and civilizations around the world. Even when much of the food we eat comes from grain or the ground, the meat will always be an essential part of a good chunk of culinary dishes and our daily diet.
Meat and How It Affects the Environment
But compared to the abundance that we once had thousands of years ago, animals that we once had to hunt down for food have gone extinct or are on the brink of extinction from widespread poaching. With an ever-growing population, the number of mouths that need to be fed will increase as years go by.
In fact, experts are starting to doubt that meat can be considered a “renewable” resource after certain disruptions in the supply chain. This is especially true since livestock will need to be fed every day and raised for years before being slaughtered for their meat. That said, the costly maintenance of livestock has caused significant changes to the climate. This is usually attributed to the production of methane and nitrous oxide from animal byproducts, which are then used for fertilizer. This has increased global warming and is known for 28 times higher contribution than carbon dioxide.
Is Plant-Based Meat the Answer?
Since the meat industry has caused a surge of greenhouse gases, much of the food industry has been clamoring for meat substitutes. What’s a known substitute that will bypass the rather expensive maintenance of raising livestock? Well, most experts are pointing to the plant-based meat industry.
Ever since the middle of the 2nd quarter of the year, the plant industry has expanded by 264% in terms of their sales in the span of two months and one week. Although these are only small numbers when you compare them to the majority of the meat industry, this milestone in growth highlights some of the opportunities alternatives in meat have gained throughout recent years.
But whether it’s processing meat, plant-based meat, or any other types of raw materials used for food, businesses will still need to invest in high-quality state-of-the-art manufacturing equipment that can effectively process meat into the desired quality. Fortunately, batter depositors can effectively process meat or plant-based meat into the desired paste and sauce consistency.
The same can be said for alternatives to dairy milk. Much of the general population has been substituting milk from livestock with oat milk, which has sales increase by 350% over the past few years. But much of these changes will still need to be observed in the long term since experts attribute the rise in sales to current trends in the COVID-19 pandemic.
Various sources point out that plant-based meat is steadily on the rise and getting more support from consumers. Slowly but surely, plant-based meat and food sources will influence much of the population’s way of interacting with meat, giving people more options. But at the present moment, meat is still one of the leading food sources around the world and will continue to be unless a ground-breaking innovation is made in substituting or providing plant-based meat.
