Information pours out about plant-based meat and dairy substitutes.  Here are some recent items, pro and con:

• Why plant-based business pioneers say the sector has just gotten started:  The animal-free meat, dairy and cheese businesses are booming, but Seth Goldman, Miyoko Schinner and Alan Hahn said at a virtual conference last week that price parity, tech developments and more shifts in consumer preferences will drive it further.
• Alternative proteins may capture 11% of total protein sales by 2035:  A new study estimates the segment will be valued at $290 billion in the next 14 years, as well as potentially reach price parity with conventional meat products as early as 2023.
• 7 in 10 US consumers would swap cell-based chicken for traditional meat:  The study done by an outside firm on behalf of Eat Just found overall attitudes toward cultured meat offerings are becoming more favorable.
• PepsiCo overhauls Evolve in bid to make plant-based brand a household name:  The food and beverage giant, which acquired the maker of bars, shakes and powders from Hormel in 2019, is hopeful new packaging, advertising and flavor profiles will raise brand awareness.
• Vegan language: Is ‘plant-based’ too limiting for this rapidly expanding sector?‘Plant-based’ is a broad term used by food marketers to describe animal-free products. But is it the most fitting?… Read more
• Plant-based dairy in focus: ‘Cheese is the most technically challenging space in dairy alternatives…’US retail sales of plant-based milk surged 21.9% to $2.542bn in measured channels in the year to Jan. 24, 2021, while sales of plant-based cheese and yogurt (far smaller categories) were up 43.6% to $233.9m and 16.4% to $346.2m respectively in the year to Feb 21, 2021, according to SPINS data…. Read more 
• The brittle truth about vegan Easter eggs:  Vegan alternatives pass the flavour test (up to a point) but are prone to shattering, according to market research…. Read more
• 1 in 4 meat substitutes ‘do not contain enough protein to be considered a source of protein’Over a quarter of processed, vegetarian meat-substitute products are not a source of protein, according to research by Safefood into the nutritional content of more than 350 products which claim to be meat replacements…. Read more

A reader, Ken Kaszak, sent me a link to a post on Quora Digest featuring this “advertisement,” which I put in quotes because it is not, in fact, an actual Coca-Cola ad; it is a joke at Coca-Cola’s expense.

I know this because I wrote about it in Soda Politics.  For starters, the ad says it is produced by “The Soda Pop Board,” but no such trade association exists.  Here’s the page from Soda Politics.

I included a footnote that explains where this parody came from: “The origins of the Parody ad are explained by Dryznar J. Favor from clever dudes, March 4, 2004. http://jdryznar.livejournal.com/64477.html.  The “Not parody” image was constructed from information from AND at www.eatright.org/corporatesponsors.  The parody ad was created by RJ White, as he explains at http://rjwhite.tumblr.com/post/472668874/fact-checking.  It was posted at The City Desk: Fictional Urbanism.  http://thecitydesk.net/baby_soda_ad.”

Once something like this starts going around, there’s no stopping it, not least because this ad seems so plausible, given the kinds of marketing I describe in my book.

Remember these?  They were for real, but fortunately are not around any more.  Parents who used these bottles put in them what was on the labels.

The Food and Environment Reporting Network (FERN) and National Geographic have jointly published an investigative report on the battle to eradicate feral hogs.  

Today, there are between six and nine million hogs running wild across at least 42 states and three territories. The exact number is difficult to pin down, and the estimated cost of the damage they cause—probably about $2.5 billion annually, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture—is likely an underestimate.

I don’t know about you, but this came as news to me.  I had no idea there were so many running around wild or that they were causing so much damage.

Rooting is also their most destructive behavior: Pigs drive their snouts and tusks into the ground and, like stubby-legged bulldozers, plow through crops, soil, forest floor, and golf green. They do it in search of grubs or acorns to eat, to cool off on summer days, to communicate, and, as far as scientists can tell, for the sheer joy of it. In the wake of a sounder, a newly planted field can resemble no man’s land on the Eastern Front, gutted in a network of trenches and craters several feet deep.

But I can see what the problem is:

“We haven’t been able to find a crop that feral swine won’t eat,” says Stephanie Shwiff, a research economist with National Wildlife Research Center.

While trying to figure out what to do about them, consider this.  According to the USDA, there are now fewer hogs on farms.   Its survey of 4,900 producers found 74.8 million hogs on U.S. farms on March 1, down 2 percent from a year earlier.

I knew you would want to know about this.

Dietary Patterns and Nutritional Status in Relation to Consumption of Chickpeas and Hummus in the U.S. Population.  by  Cara L. Frankenfeld and Taylor C. Wallace.   Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(20), 7341; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10207341

Conclusion: ” Adults who consumed chickpeas and hummus were 48% and 62% less likely to have metabolic syndrome, respectively. Consuming chickpeas or hummus may be a practical means of improving diet quality and nutritional status. ”

Funding:  This research was funded by an investigator-initiated, unrestricted educational grant from Sabra Dipping Co., LLC.

Comment: That’s what they all say about the sponsor’s role, despite substantial evidence to the contrary (in many other cases).  Sabra is owned by PepsiCo.

Hat tip: To Daniel Bowmn Simon for sending me this one.

The press release says it all:  “New Report Highlights How Stagnant U.S. Public Funding for Agricultural Research Threatens Food Systems.”

Stagnant public funding for agricultural research is threatening the future vitality of U.S. food systems – posing risks to farmer productivity and profitability, the steady supply of affordable food for consumers, and ultimately global food security, according to a new report.

The report, jointly commissioned by Farm Journal Foundation and the American Farm Bureau Federation and authored by the IHS Markit Agribusiness Consulting Group, highlights the vital importance of public funding for agricultural research and development (R&D).

New innovations are crucial so that farmers can increase their productivity and meet rising global demand for food, even as climate change intensifies. The world population is expected to reach 10 billion by 2050, and food production will need to increase by 60%-70% to meet rising demand. While private-sector funding for agricultural R&D has been increasing, U.S. public spending has been flat for the past decade.

Here’s the big picture.

Here’s what’s happening with USDA research funding—flat.

And here’s what’s happening with overall agricultural research.  Public funding is flat.  Industry funding is rising rapidly. 

Why is this a problem?  Because industry funds research aimed at developing and marketing profit-making products

This leaves research aimed at public health to be supported by the public.  Research is needed to

• Increase productivity
• Improve crop protection
• Promote animal health and welfare
• Prevent animal diseases
• Protect against pandemics
• Reduce effects of climate change

Industry won’t fund these research areas if there’s no profit in them.

That’s why more public funds need to go to agricultural research.

Here’s a one page summary.

Here’s the full report.

If you, like me, are not in the mood for jokes that won’t seem funny today, here’s an idea for an alternative.

The Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) has produced a report on soda taxes in the region.

What’s happening with soda taxes in Latin America is impressive.

Soda taxes, no matter where they are, seem to be doing what they are supposed to:

Latin America is a model for Dietary Guidelines (Brazil) and front-of-package warning labels (Chile).

Wish we could do these things.