Plant-based meat and dairy alternatives may have exploded onto the food scene in recent years but the hype is catching up, consumer sales have been lackluster and investors are turning away. Questions have emerged about whether plant-based alternatives are the climate solution they claim to be, or an ethical choice throughout their supply chains. Are they even taking the right approach by aiming for replicas, or do we need new protein formats altogether?

To tackle these questions and more we hosted a very special live show at New Hope Network’s Natural Products Expo West, with a panel including Miyoko’s Creamery founder Miyoko Schinner, Rainfed Foods founder Sujala Balaji, and Danone’s VP of Marketing Plant-Based Beverages Olivia Sanchez. Our first-ever live show features some serious debate about the future of plant-based food.

Today we cover:

• Why the success of plant-based products has slowed down in the US
• Is it important for those working in the plant-based food industry have a plant-based diet?
• Is there room for flexibility in our diets? Should plant-based foods be complemented with animal products?
• The potential unintended consequences of plant-based food
• What should the role of big conglomerates be in the plant-based sector?
• The rising demand for meat around the world and how emerging markets are responding
• The role of regenerative agriculture in the plant-based trend.

This episode marks the end of Season 1! We’ve really enjoyed ourselves and hope you have too. Let us know what you’d like to see us cover in future by leaving a comment or contacting us via newfoodorder.org.

Show Notes

• The Vegan Good Life with Miyoko
• Rainfed Foods
• Danone
• Expo West
• WWF Future 50 Foods report

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Thank you to Foodshot Global & New Hope Network for sponsoring the series.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life: 

Production: Patrick Carter, Cofruition

Audio Editing: Tevin Sudi

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera 

Art: Lola Nankin

Project Management: Patrick Carter