Innovatia

that conventional meat doesn’t have. Cultivat- ed meat was approved for sale in Singapore in 2020, and was approved for sale in the US in June this year. The next chapter of dairy production Also coming under the banner of alternative proteins are products made from precision fer- mentation. Like cultivated meat, they will com- pletely revolutionise our food systems. Preci- sion fermentation uses microorganisms (such as yeast or bacteria) that are programmed to produce a specific compound (such as a pro- tein or fat). These proteins and fats can be har- vested and used to create foods like egg white, dairy products, and even human milk. There are four precision fermentation compa- nies in Australia. One of them is Orange-based Couldron which raised $10.5 million to build the largest network of precision fermentation facilities in the Asia-Pacific. Precision fermentation company Change Foods has a global team working to supply the mass processing industry with non-dairy ca- sein for cheese—a product that isn’t reliant on providence or taste, it merely performs a func- tion that conventional dairy currently does. And then there are companies that take it a step further by using technology that can make a protein of their choice, like Air Protein which uses air, water and energy to activate culture and turn it into flour, which is then made into a familiar food, like meat. Change to our food supply is just getting started The alternative protein sector, in particular cul- tivated meat and precision fermentation, faces

“Plant-based meat—which relies on base ingredients such as pulses and legumes – will generate almost $3 billion in domestic consumer sales by 2030.” In the meantime, Australian grain growers would do well to keep an eye on the growth of the plant-based meat industry to see if it offers them an opportunity to diversify their markets in years to come. Dr Simon Eassom is the Executive Director of Food Frontier. Across his distinguished career he has been a university professor in the UK, and worked in executive roles in IT, education, and smarter cities. Simon is a thought leader on the use of Big Data, predictive analytics, and AI, and has consulted on the impacts of technology on health management, and food.

to produce alternative proteins and ingredients that generate $10 billion in revenue, and one of Australia’s largest foodservice companies, Compass, has developed a plant-forward pro- gram to fulfil sustainability goals—plant-based meats are a part of it. These products are an ‘and’, not an ‘or’ - they complement existing animal proteins that flex- itarians include in their diets. To what extent, remains to be seen.

regulatory barriers, funding and consumer ac- ceptance—challenges that face most novel and innovative food technologies. However, with the world’s population expect- ed to reach 10 billion by 2050 and the need for protein production forecast to increase by 70 per cent, alternative proteins have gathered mo- mentum and are seen as a significant ecologi- cally viable way to supplement animal protein. CSIRO’s Future Protein Mission program aims

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