Coronavirus will boost ‘clean meat’ trend, says supplier
The Coronavirus crisis could hasten the trend for Clean Meat among consumers who are seeking the flavor of meat while completely eliminating any risk of viral infections.
OLIVER MORRISON: The cultured meat sector is set to eventually be buoyed by the coronavirus crisis as consumers become more interested in food solutions seen as sustainable and safe, believes the co-founder and managing director of cultured meat supplier Peace of Meat. David Brandes told FoodNavigator that while the COVID-19 pandemic “is a setback” in the short term, drying up potential customers’ cash ow and delaying innovation projects, the crisis will give rise to a “new normal” and in the long term could hasten the trend among consumers of seeking foods with perceived sustainability and environmentally-friendly credentials…
Meanwhile, as scientists reckon close contact with wild animals through hunting, trade or habitat loss puts the world at increased risk of outbreaks of new diseases, consumers could be attracted to lab-grown meat’s safety credentials. “COVID, and also SARS or MERS, Spanish flu and BSE: those are all of zoonotic origin,” continued Brandes. “They have all spilled over from animals to humans by consumption of the flesh by humans.”
He contends that cultured meat, however, offers a solution to consumers seeking the flavour of meat whilst completely eliminating any risk of viral infections. “Because we are working with cell lines under a clinical environment, there’s no cross contamination. Cells are screened for irregularities and the environment is completely aseptic and sterile. There is no way any virus could form in this production system”…
Looking further forward, Brandes also sees the sector potentially playing a role as consumers use the coronavirus experience to seek out foods that could potentially improve their health and boost their immune systems. “What cultured meat is very capable of doing in the future is to personalise and individualise the nutritional profile to cater to various nutritional deficiencies,” he observed. “We could address various nutritional deficiencies by adding more vitamins, amino acids, and saturated and unsaturated fats depending on which market we are serving – and in the end it will result in boosting the immune system”. SOURCE…
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