Recently, the author read a critical article published by Reference News - "Is the "plant-based" label really reliable? The article is a compilation of an article by Yasmin Tayag published on January 8 in the American monthly magazine "The Atlantic** entitled "The 'plant-based' label has lost its meaning".
The gist of the article is that the author, who was originally a big fan of plant-based foods, believes that eating more plant-based foods is not only better for his health, but also for his animals and the planet. But with the successive introduction of plant-based foods and market feedback, the authors and some other researchers found that:"Plant-based".The label has been applied to many foods – including those that have been highly processed, or those that have never contained animal ingredients – to the point that it has "lost any relevance". The authors believe that in the long run, plant-based foods may become marketing gimmicks and lose their original natural, healthy, environmentally friendly, low-carbon and other functional positioning and the original intention of sustainable diet.
Source: Green Society).
What are "plant-based" foods?
What is the definition of a plant-based food? What's the difference between it and the "vegetarian" in our minds? The group standard of "General Principles of Plant-based Food" issued by the Chinese Society of Food Science and Technology in August 2021 clarifies the definition of plant-based food: food made of plant raw materials (including algae and fungi) or their products as proteins, fats, etc., with or without other ingredients, and made by a certain process, with texture, flavor, morphology and other quality characteristics similar to a certain animal food.
The concept of "plant-based" has been around for a long time
In 2019, The Lancet published a report that found that unsustainable food systems are one of the main causes of environmental damage. Reducing emissions through the food system contributes to sustainable development. With the advancement of the "double carbon" strategy, the concept of green, low-carbon and sustainable development has been deepened and popularized in various industries, and the concept of "plant-based" has been hotly promoted since about 2020, becoming a hot word in the industry for a period of time, and 2020 is known by the market as the "explosive year" for the development of plant-based food.
What are the advantages of "plant-based" foods?
Plant-based foods mainly include plant-based meat, plant-based milk, plant-based eggs, plant-based drinks, etc., which can replace some animal foods, and also have the advantages of low calories, rich dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals, and low-carbon environmental protection. In reality, green plant-based foods are also sought after by young consumer groups.
Limited consumer groups, insufficient popularity of "plant-based"?
What is the current status of the development of "plant-based" food in the domestic industry? The author has done a check, probably since 2020, the concept of "plant-based" has become popular, and many large catering and food companies have tried to lay out or launch related products in China, but later, most of the products have "disappeared" from the company's menu. The author found several plant-based drinks that have been on the market, and the sales have been dismal because of the general market response.
It can be seen that although the main consumer group of "plant-based" food is positioned as young people, due to the lack of objective understanding of the concept and health efficacy of plant-based food, a survey released by IFIC (International Food Information Association) found that about three-quarters of consumers know that plant-based milk does not contain milk, but this survey also shows that the term "plant-based" is not clear when it comes to food and beverages, which may be due to the different levels of exposure to plant-based diets from people as a whole.
Gather scientific consensus and help the high-quality development of the industry
In the author's opinion, the original intention of the "plant-based" concept is indeed biodiversity-friendly and environmentally friendly, and it is also considered to be a sustainable solution to change the status quo of climate and environment. In the process of industry development, due to the lack of product standards, there are many limitations and deficiencies in industry management and product certification, and various problems and challenges have indeed arisen.
On May 10, 2022, the Standards Working Committee of the China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Association (hereinafter referred to as the "Green Society") jointly announced the implementation of the first project in ChinaChina Plant-Based Food StandardsActively promote green, healthy, low-carbon and environmentally friendly pure plant food, help the transformation of food diversification, dietary structure and production methods, guide and standardize the orderly development of plant-based food production and marketization, and give consumers a more reassuring and clear basis and guarantee when purchasing and consuming.
(Recommended reading: China's first pure plant-based food standard officially opens the certification channel Green Society's standard work progress.
Reference Links:1Is the "plant-based" label really reliable?
2.Condense scientific issues and use science and technology to build a solid foundation for the development of the plant-based food market.
3.What is trendy plant-based? Do you need it?
Text: Cherry Review, Tammy, ed. Angel