Alternative meat seen as potentially juicy business

They are no longer on the food fringe, vegetable-based meats are sold well in supermarkets and are becoming a popular product for fast-food chains, industrial food companies and Wall Street investors.

JPMorgan Chase has estimated that the vegetable-based meat market could easily exceed $ 100 billion in 15 years.

Barclays says the "alternative meat" market could account for about 10 percent of all global meat sales, or up to $ 140 billion in 10 years.

Among the large restaurant chains, Burger King has been testing a vegetarian version of its flagship "Whopper" since April, while McDonald's has presented a hamburger without meat in Germany. Kentucky Fried Chicken is studying meatless options for its menu.

Alternatives to meat are not new, of course, but new companies and other growing players in the business have taken advantage of new technologies to simulate the taste and texture of authentic meat more completely.

Newly-known companies, Impossible Food and Beyond, have sometimes struggled to meet the growing demand for their products, even when Wall Street has bet on its potential.

On his first day on Wall Street as a publicly traded company, Beyond Meat rose 163 percent, ending the session at $ 65.75.

Impossible Burger, which is already sold in more than 7,000 restaurants in the United States and Asia, recently raised $ 300 million in a round of financing that valued the company at $ 2 billion.

Enter food giants

Among the big food companies, the Swiss giant Nestle launched in April its "incredible hamburger" in Europe based on extracts of soy, wheat and beet and other plants.

In the fall, Nestle plans to offer a pea-based "Sweet Earth" vegetarian burger in the United States.

Last year, the Anglo-Dutch company Unilever bought the vegetarian butcher, who said he intends to become the "world's largest butcher" with meat of vegetable origin.

Alternative meat sales increased 23 percent in 2018 in the United States, according to the Food Institute.

Some risks

Despite the great potential, analysts warn of the possibility of losing sight of some uncertainties facing the industry.

"There are risk factors to consider, such as the fact that alternative meat products are less healthy than what is claimed as a result of the additives to attract the customer's taste," said the Barclays note.

In addition, there is always a risk that the emerging stars in the business will be overcome by a withdrawal, JPMorgan said.

And the impact of the errors could be amplified by the growing presence of larger and more diversified companies competing in the market. Conventional companies also have sophisticated supply chains and direct access to capital.