Lifestyle Sports: Latest from Food Politics: What's happening with plant-based meat: a roundup

By Marion Nestle

January 29 2026

What’s happening with plant-based meat: a roundup

Here’s my most recent collection of items about plant- and cell-based meats, in an effort to try to figure out what is happening with the market for these products. Prospects are not as bright as they were at the height of this trend, but these product have considerable staying power. Time will tell.

Trends

Plant-based meat in 2026: What’s next for the plant-based trend?… Read more
Is plant-based dead – or evolving? Plant-based brands are looking for new ways to lure in consumers after the category’s initial success… Read more

Successes

Record 960% rise in alt protein patents signals industry rebound: Major food and beverage manufacturers, including Nestlé and Unilever, are busily securing alt protein patents as sector grows… Read more
Why meat alternatives are landing with young people: Younger consumers are often more open to new technologies and less sceptical about ultra-processed foods… Read more
First-ever mycoprotein goes through novel food system successfully: The Protein Brewery is celebrating a positive scientific opinion from Europe’s food safety agency. So when will its new mycoprotein ingredient hit the market?… Read more

Difficulties

Nina Teicholz in the Wall Street Journal: Meat Will Make America Healthy Again: Federal guidelines favor inferior plant-based protein.
Is meat too cheap for plant-based to succeed? The cost of meat production is not necessarily reflected in the end price…. Read more
Believer Meats ceases operations, but ‘setback’ does not mean cultivated meat sector is doomed, insist key players: “With an unlimited budget, you can rush to hit certain milestones—like building a full-scale production facility—but you risk putting the cart before the horse,” says one expert.

Regulation

Cultivated meat guidance released in UK: 4 key takeaways: The UK has released its first guidelines on cultivated meat novel food applications… Read more

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