Plantwise Weekly Issue #2
Meatless Farm x VFC, Lab-grown Meat Breakthrough, & Much More
Welcome to our second issue of Plantwise Weekly, a curated digest of the week's most groundbreaking developments.
We plan to keep the newsletter free, but in return, we kindly ask you to share it with your friends, family, and colleagues 😊. This weekly newsletter is published every Saturday.
🌱 Meatless Farm: From the Brink of Collapse to VFC Acquisition
📚 TL;DR: VFC has now acquired Meatless Farm, a renowned plant-based food company. This event followed significant challenges for Meatless Farm in the competitive meat-free market. Early this week, Meatless Farm was unable to continue trading and had to let go of its 50-strong workforce. The acquisition is reportedly worth £12 million in sales.
🧩 Context: Founded in 2016, Meatless Farm gained popularity for its vegan mince. Its products were also stocked in major UK supermarkets. However, Meatless Farm was not a top player in a crowded plant-based market, accounting for just a 1.2% share of the market. Despite these challenges, VFC will keep the Meatless Farm brand.
➡️ Want to learn more about the Meatless Farm acquisition? Read the full story here.
🔬 Lab-Grown Meat Gets Green Light for Sale in the United States
📚 TL;DR: The United States has approved the sale of lab-grown or 'cultivated' meat. Good Meat plans to partner with chef José Andrés to launch its product in a Washington, DC restaurant. Upside Foods is set to debut its product at Bar Crenn, a San Francisco restaurant. They are now holding a contest allowing lucky customers to be among the first to try the product in the US.
🧩 Context: Lab-grown meat has gained momentum after a series of approvals paving the way for its sales in the US. Supporters of cultured meat hope it will combat climate change. This is a critical step as traditional animal agriculture accounts for 70% of greenhouse gas emissions from food systems.
➡️ Interested in the lab-grown meat revolution? You can read the full story here.
🍨 Finnish Solar Foods' Solein Ice Cream Debuts in Singapore
📚 TL;DR: Singapore-based consumers now have the unique opportunity to enjoy ice cream made from Solein, an animal-free protein developed by Finnish foodtech company Solar Foods. Solein, created from a single cell using hydrogen and carbon dioxide, replaces dairy in this innovative chocolate-flavoured gelato. It is currently being served at Fico, a popular Italian restaurant owned by the Lo & Behold Group in Singapore. This marks the first time a Solein-based product has been made available to the public.
🧩 Context: Solar Foods uses a natural bioprocess of fermenting a single microbe to create Solein - a protein product that's 200 times more efficient than meat and even 20 times more efficient than photosynthesis. Requiring only air, renewable electricity, and a handful of minerals, Solein can theoretically provide an infinitely scalable food source that's unbound by traditional agricultural limitations.
➡️ Curious to learn more about Solar Foods and their revolutionary Solein-based products? Read the full story here.
🍬 UK Government Delays Junk Food Promotions Ban until 2025
📚 TL;DR: The UK Government has postponed the implementation of a ban on junk food deals for another two years. This ban includes two-for-one offers and free drink top-ups. The government cited concerns about rising food prices and financial pressures on households.
🧩 Context: Prime Minister Rishi Sunak wants to avoid restricting consumer options. However, the decision has disappointed health campaigners. According to a document from the Department of Health, the evidence is clear. Promotions of junk food do influence their purchases, especially among children. The ban is aimed at medium and large retailers. It would also restrict restaurants from offering free drink top-ups.
➡️ The details regarding the UK Government's postponement of the junk food promotions ban can be found here.
🔥 Igniting Change: Food Systems Key in Climate Negotiations
📚 TL;DR: Dr. Lucy Wallace of the Food Systems Partnership talked about food systems at the Bonn Climate Change Conference. She said they play a big role in fighting climate change. Food systems make up 31% of global emissions. If we continue like this, emissions from food systems alone could increase global warming beyond 1.5°C between 2051 and 2063. That's why food systems must be part of climate talks. The Food Systems Partnership has a new report. It offers six ways to make food systems help combat climate change.
🧩 Context: Food systems are crucial for climate action. But, often, people don't think about food and farming in climate talks. At the recent COP 27 event, this started to change. The Food Systems Partnership has used this chance to release a report. The report, 'Pathways for Food Systems Transformation', has a lot of useful tips. Policymakers can use these tips to include food systems in their climate plans.
➡️ To learn more about 'Pathways for Food Systems Transformation' report and the role of food systems in climate action, read the full story here.
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