Vegan Meat Market Predicted to Reach $140 Billion by 2029 

The vegan meat industry could be worth $140 billion in the next decade, capturing a 10 percent market share of the $1.4 trillion global meat industry, according to a report titled “Can’t Believe It’s Not Meat” compiled by a group of analysts at acclaimed financial firm Barclays. The report was released on the heels of vegan brand Beyond Meat’s first day of trading on NASDAQ—which represents the most successful initial public offering of 2019. “Although today we believe that there are inherent barriers to successfully replicating certain animal-based consumer favorites (e.g., t-bone steaks), what has been achieved so far in terms of ‘meatless’ ground beef, sausage, and hamburger products has yielded positive initial consumer reaction,” the analysts said. “While lab-based meat is still likely several years away from hitting supermarket shelves, plant-based protein continues to gain ground vs. its animal-based counterpart, and we expect this trend to continue for the foreseeable future.” Barclays analysts added that they believed that the plant-based protein market might present a bigger market opportunity than the electric car industry did ten years ago. According to a brief published last week by Dow Jones-run publication Barron’s, Beyond Meat and competitor Impossible Foods could be the Coca-Cola and Pepsi Foods of the plant-based sector in coming years.