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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Comment
Aine Carlin

I was a champion of fake meat: but I’m not surprised people are losing their taste for it

A photograph showing some raw beef mince resembling a piece of knitting, with two knitting needles stuck into the meat on either side.
‘Not so long ago we were enamoured of everything that vegan alternatives promised.’ Photograph: Liz Mcburney/Liz McBurney

Faux meat is failing. Once championed as a way to fight the climate emergency, protein alternatives are now struggling, with plant-based pioneers Beyond Meat reporting net revenue losses of nearly 31% in the second quarter of this year.

I could say I’m surprised, but the truth is I’m only amazed that our collective love affair with fake meat lasted as long as it did. I was once a fan, but standing in front of a towering wall of hyper-processed meat alternatives in my local supermarket last year, I couldn’t help but think: are vegan burgers that bleed really the answer to our meat consumption woes?

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