Plant Protein to Become $85 Billion Business in Food Revolution
Once a ‘Comical Fad,’ Mock Meat to Lead an $85 Billion Business
(Bloomberg) -- The market for plant-based protein is set to surge over the next decade as part of a technological revolution in agriculture, according to UBS Group AG.
“Mock meat was an almost comical fad 20 years ago,” Wayne Gordon, senior Asia-Pacific strategist at UBS Global Wealth Management, said in a 67-page report. “It’s no laughing matter today, given the industry’s meteoric rise in recent years.”
Beyond Meat Inc., the vegan burger maker, emerged as this year’s darling in the IPO market, with shares surpassing $200 last month compared with a $25 offering price. UBS predicts the plant-protein market will swell to $85 billion by 2030 from $4.6 billion now, with the broad market for agriculture technology set to expand more than five fold.
The ability to create lab-grown food “that replicates meat, fish, eggs and dairy products -- with a lower carbon footprint and without the need to slaughter animals -- is likely to become a commercially viable option in the next decade,” UBS said.
Agriculture accounts for 40% of land use, 30% of greenhouse gas emissions and 70% of freshwater consumption, UBS said, citing the United Nations. Biological solutions include vertical farming, lab-grown food and artificial intelligence, the bank said.
In 2018, the digital economy reached only 0.3% of agriculture and trailed other industries, UBS said. The figure is poised to surge with technology investment last year up 43% to $16.9 billion from 2017, the bank said, citing AgFunder.
In the outlook to 2030, UBS forecast growth of 16% for both smart farming and online food delivery, 13% for seed treatment and 9% for seed science, and “investors should diversify their exposure and own listed and unlisted companies alike.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Denitsa Tsekova in New York at dtsekova@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: James Attwood at jattwood3@bloomberg.net, Patrick McKiernan
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