Thanks so much for your comment, and for your support of GFI! We really appreciate you taking the time to engage so thoughtfully with our post.

Regarding your first question about whether alternative protein products are ready for large-scale production, we believe the answer is yes. There are around 370 European companies known to have reached a stage where they’ve successfully produced at pilot scale, with a proven technology, industrial validation, and a product ready for commercialisation. Most plant-based and biomass-fermented protein products are technically ready for large-scale production, but companies lack access to sufficient food-grade commercial facilities. While precision fermentation-made and cultivated proteins show strong progress at pilot scale, but still face technical, infrastructure and cost barriers to scaling.

And it’s not just about the companies that are ready now; we also need to prepare for those that will reach this stage soon. If we don’t start building the infrastructure today, we risk creating a bottleneck down the line. We see this as a major systemic risk for alternative proteins, and one that affects the whole ecosystem as well as the future of our climate, animal welfare, and food security.

There are definitely other challenges facing alternative proteins. Misinformation about “ultra-processed” plant-based foods has influenced public opinion, which is why GFI Europe recently partnered with the Physicians Association for Nutrition to publish one of the most comprehensive, evidence-based guides on plant-based foods and health. It helps dispel myths about processing and highlights the real nutritional and environmental benefits of plant-based meat, providing decision-makers with reliable evidence to work from rather than relying on misinformation.

Misconceptions around ultra-processed foods are particularly strong in the UK (and to some extent the US), but in countries like Germany, the debate is already more nuanced and plant-based sales there are continuing to grow. That’s promising, and it reinforces how important it is to bring facts and context into the conversation.

Regarding consumer demand, we’re actually seeing promising signs that slightly contradict those mentioned in Jacob Peacock’s analysis. Our recent survey in the UK and Germany found that 54% of adults want to reduce their meat and dairy consumption or eat more plant-based foods. Health was the top motivation, despite the negative narratives around processing. We’ve shared these insights with retailers, and we’re already seeing positive impact: Tesco and Sainsbury’s (major retailers in the UK) are using this data to improve pricing, placement, and messaging to better reach flexitarian shoppers and expand the market for alternative proteins.

And beyond plant-based, we’re working to make sure cultivated meat and fermentation can succeed too. You mentioned that you are feeling less optimistic about the future of cultivated meat, and I agree that there are real challenges. But the positive news is that we aren’t just passive observers of the industry; at GFI, we’re actively trying to shape the trajectory of the field. We’re helping secure billions in public funding for open-access R&D, pushing back against overregulation, and keeping alternative proteins in key policy conversations about climate, food security, and economic resilience. And while it’s still early days, even a small shift towards cultivated meat and other alternatives could spare huge numbers of animals and cut climate emissions significantly.

So in short, you’re absolutely right, scale-up isn’t the only bottleneck, and GFI isn’t treating it as such. Advances in the science of alternative proteins and addressing the cultural and societal elements you mention are critical too, and GFI continues to direct a lot of resource to these areas. It is testament to the progress made in these areas that we’re now at the exciting point where the sector and GFI are ready to dive into addressing the challenge of scaling up. But it is one of the most funding-intensive and underfunded challenges, and without solving it, even the best-tasting, most affordable products can’t reach the market at scale. 

Thanks again for engaging in some healthy discussion. I hope this helps!