“The global alternative protein industry is currently going through an unprecedented level of competition and disruption,” – says FutureBridge

UTRECHT, The Netherlands — Oct 22, 2020 — Amidst the ongoing pandemic, alternative protein sales have hit record levels, with product launches skyrocketing, including under flagship brands.
Based on FutureBridge’s research, this record-setting trend is matched by the investments in alternative protein start-ups.

FutureBridge reports that global alternative protein start-ups received over $1.4 billion in funding in the first half of 2020, a 135% increase compared with the same period last year.

“The alternative protein sector was already moving forward at a breakneck pace,” said Sarah Browner, Senior Analyst at FutureBridge. “The coronavirus pandemic is turbocharging this growth. It exposed the vulnerability of industrial meat, from the public health worries driven by frequent outbreaks in meat-processing plants to the public perception worries of industrial meat farming.”

The funding haul was led by Impossible Foods, the nine-year-old privately held meat replacement challenger to publicly traded Beyond Meat. The company raised roughly $800 million in 2020H1, bringing its total haul to $1.4 billion.

FutureBridge’s top Food & Nutrition trend of 2020, microbial proteins, recorded an increase in total funding of $80 million in 2020H1. Our analysts noted a growing trend around fermentation technologies being used by start-ups and established players to produce novel protein sources.

For example, Nature’s Fynd is a Chicago start-up employing a breakthrough fermentation technology to produce Fy™, the product of a cultivated, naturally occurring microorganism from the hot springs of Yellowstone National Park.

The report’s outlook projects accelerated developments in the alternative protein sector through the rest of 2020 and into 2021 as consumer demand continues to shift to a new way of eating.

FutureBridge will host a webinar on Alternative Proteins Post-COVID-19: Investing in a Meatless Future on Nov 19, 2020, at 4.30 pm CET / 10.30 am EST to discuss the above points in more detail. To register, click here.

FOR INTERVIEWS/MORE INFORMATION: prakash.dogra@futurebridge.com

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