DATA AND ESG
The sustainability of alternative proteins
Brazil can feed more people with fewer natural resources by promoting the development of the alternative protein sector. Learn how the inclusion of plant-based, fermented, and cell-cultured products can be part of the solution to this global challenge.
Credit: Upside Foods
A continuous journey of adaptation and innovation
01. How to promote Safety
alimentar for 10 Billion people
The concept of 'Food Security' is defined as the condition in which all people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to safe, nutritious food that is sufficient to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. This is the core mission expectation of our food system.
Analyzing the year 2022, 735 million people around the world faced hunger and approximately 30% of the global population were in a situation of food insecurity¹ . In Brazil, the scenario is no different; in that same year, 10 million people faced hunger and more than 70 million experienced food insecurity¹.
Projections still indicate that the global population should reach 9,7 billion people² in 2050, which is almost 2 billion more people to be fed by the global food system, which has already been operating above planetary limits⁹.
To meet the growing demand for food with the same global consumption pattern, based primarily on animal products, the food system will require 49% more land, consume 34% more water and emit 46% more greenhouse gases ³.
In addition to the high consumption of natural resources needed to sustain the food system, another major challenge lies in the significant losses that occur throughout this process. To illustrate this situation, a study mapped the fate of 41 major crops: 41% of the calories produced by these crops are lost within the food system itself⁴ . A significant portion of this loss occurs in the production of animal-based foods, where 89% of the initially available calories are wasted during the conversion of plants into animal products⁴.
Even with significant losses in the production process, which contributes to the intensity of its environmental footprint, global meat production is expected to increase by 13% by 2034 , reaching 406 million tons of carcass/year¹³ . When specifically considering beef—the most resource-intensive of all meats produced on a large scale—Brazil is expected to account for 21% of global production in the next 10 years⁵ , consolidating its position as the largest exporter and second largest producer of this product, which could further overburden the use of natural resources in the country.
Cristina Ambiel
Director of Science and Technology
Food can't be viewed from just one perspective; we need to go further, understanding that the planet's sustainability and our health are strongly connected and associated with both food production and dietary choices. In a recent study on the nutritional quality of plant-based meat products, we saw that these foods are increasingly viable as healthy substitutes for meat products and offer consumers the opportunity to make informed and conscious choices. Therefore, protein diversification is one of the keys to the future, contributing to our health and that of the planet.
Promoting human health and reducing the risk of new pandemics
Most of the new diseases that have emerged in humans in recent decades, such as COVID-19, have an animal origin and are related to the search for food, including meat from wild species and livestock products⁶.
The rapid growth of large-scale livestock production also brings threats to public health associated with the transfer of pathogens from animals to humans, which implies pandemic risks and challenges to food security⁶.
The widely adopted preventive measure for this production model is the widespread use of antibiotics, mainly in animal farming, which can lead to the formation of superbugs resistant to treatment methods used in modern medicine. It is estimated that antimicrobial resistance (AMR) was directly responsible for approximately 1,27 million deaths in 2019⁷.
The vast majority of all antibiotics produced today in the United States and the world are used for conventional animal agriculture and contribute to projections that by 2050, these superbugs are estimated to kill 10 million people per year and cost the global economy US$100 trillion⁸.
By eliminating the need for large-scale animal production, alternative proteins contribute to reducing the impacts of AMR and new pandemics while promoting better health for their consumers. In comparative studies conducted in 2022 and 2023, where meat products of animal origin and their plant-based analogues available on the Brazilian market were sampled, the plant-based analogue products showed comparable nutritional value and, in some aspects, superior to that of the animal-based items, with a reduction in saturated fat and sodium content and a higher fiber content.1⁰ ¹¹ ¹².
SOURCE:
1 FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO (2023). The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2023.
2 United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2022). World Population Prospects 2022.
3 Credit Suisse Research Institute (2021). The global food system: Identifying sustainable solutions.
5 ABIEC (2024). Beef report 2023: Livestock profile in Brazil.
6 FAO (2013). World Livestock 2013: Changing disease landscapes.
8 O'Neill, Jim (2016). Review on AMR: Tackling drug-resistant infections globally.
9 FAIRR (2024). Tackling the Climate-Nature Nexus.
10 Ambiel, Cristiana; Pinho, Lorena (2022). Nutritional study: comparative analysis between meat products of animal origin and their vegetable analogues.
02. Land use and the flow of your products
in the food system
Currently, animal production is at the heart of the global food system, and even though it occupies 80% of arable land with pastures and feed crops, animal-based foods account for only 17% of the global supply of calories and 38% of the global supply of protein¹. In contrast, using 16% of arable land, the cultivation of agricultural crops for human consumption accounts for 83% and 62% of the global supply of calories and protein, respectively¹.
In Brazil, agriculture has grown by more than 50% in the last 38 years , occupying 33% of the national territory³. Approximately 64% of this expansion is due to deforestation for the opening of new pasture areas³. In 2023, about 19% of the national territory is occupied by pastures, however 76% of this area presents a productivity level below the national average (65,8 kg of carcass per hectare/year)⁷.
In addition to pastures, soybean cultivation has also been another protagonist in the expansion process of Brazilian agribusiness, which since 2019 has occupied first place on the list of producing countries of this grain⁴ . Between 2002 and 2022, while global soybean cultivation registered an increase of 92,8% in production and 69,5% in cultivated area, Brazil almost tripled its soybean production (+186,5%) and cultivated area with this monoculture (+150%) ⁴.
The main destination for soybean production is animal feed , accounting for 76% of global consumption⁴ . In 2023, it is estimated that Brazil produced more than 83 million tons of feed and concentrates using approximately 53 million tons of corn and 18 million tons of soybean meal⁵.
In this context, it is estimated that approximately 41% of the calories and 79% of the proteins produced in the cultivation of the main agricultural crops are offered for animal feed in Brazil⁶.
Luciana Fontinelle
Science and technology specialist
Research that investigates the potential of native species of Brazilian biodiversity is crucial for the conservation of our biomes. It not only contributes to the preservation of the environment, but also creates sustainable, healthy and tasty solutions for the alternative protein sector and socioeconomic development opportunities for local communities, showing that it is possible to combine innovation and conservation for the benefit of all. Visit the Biomas Program landing page now to learn more about the research that is shaping the future of this transformation.
Challenges for the conservation of the Amazon Rainforest and the Brazilian Cerrado
Despite the essential role of the Amazon Rainforest in regulating the global climate—a topic widely discussed for over 50 years—in the last 39 years, there has been a 363% increase in pasture areas within the biome. During the same period, virtually 100% of the soybean cultivation areas in the Amazon were established, currently totaling approximately 5,9 million hectares⁸ ⁹ . Meanwhile, the Cerrado, considered a hotspot (a region with a high concentration of endemic species) by Conservation International, has had 26% of its total area occupied by pastures and is currently the biome with the largest agricultural area and area planted with soybeans in the country , accounting for approximately 48% of the area planted with this monoculture in Brazil in 2022³.
On the other hand, the search for new ingredients from Brazilian biodiversity to boost the alternative protein sector is a current reality and reinforces the importance of conserving these biomes, in addition to encouraging the creation of new production chains based on the value generated by standing forests.
SOURCE:
1 Ritchie, Hannah; Roser, Max (2024). Half of the world's habitable land is used for agriculture.
2 ABIEC (2023). Beef report 2023: Livestock profile in Brazil.
3 MapBiomas (2024). Annual mapping of land cover and use in Brazil from 1985 to 2022 – Collection 8.
4 Ritchie, Hannah (2024). Drivers of Deforestation.
5 Sindirações (2023). Industry newsletter – September 2023.
7 ABIEC (2024). Beef report 2024: Livestock profile in Brazil.
03. Adaptation of the food system for production of more environmentally efficient foods
By replacing 50% of the main animal-based products (pork, chicken, beef, and milk) with plant-based products, the global agricultural area could be reduced by 12%, as well as water use, which would decrease by 10%, and the net reduction of forests would be almost entirely halted ¹. This is due to the greater efficiency of alternative proteins in the process of converting consumed natural resources into a final product, making analogous products less impactful on the environment than their animal-based versions ² ³ ⁴ ⁶.
To explain some of these results, it is necessary to understand that raising an animal requires energy (calories) for basic metabolic functions, such as walking and breathing, and for the growth of parts not used for human consumption. This means that a large portion of the inputs used in raising these animals are not converted into a final product (meat). For example, it is estimated that chicken, the most efficient of the animals used on a large scale in livestock farming, still requires 9 calories of feed to produce 1 calorie of meat⁵.
When we analyze the Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) from the perspective of dry matter consumed, such as feed, grass, and silage, to produce 1 kg of final product (meat), Cultivated meat from cells presents a conversion rate close to 1. This means that approximately 1 kg of resources are needed to produce 1 kg of final product. When compared to conventional meats, Cultivated meat is 5,8 times more efficient than cattle in feed conversion, 4,6 times more efficient than pork, and 2,8 times more efficient than chicken² . The lower the conversion rate of inputs into final product (meat), the greater the demand for natural resources to compensate for the inefficiency of this system.
SOURCE:
04. The role of the food system
nose climate changes
Global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2019 were estimated at 52,6 Gt CO2 eq , excluding emissions from forests and other land uses¹. This estimate covers up to 95% of global GHG emissions in the reference year and was recently released in the summary report of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) of the 195 signatory countries of the Paris Agreement (an international treaty signed during the United Nations Conference on Climate Change with the aim of limiting global warming to 1,5°-2°C above pre-industrial levels)¹.
In that same year, concentrations of methane (CH4), a greenhouse gas with a warming potential 34 times greater than CO2 over 100 years, were higher than at any other time in the last 800 years² . Currently, about 60% of methane emissions from human activities are related to the food system, with livestock farming being the main source of emissions³ . This activity accounts for half of methane emissions in the food system, with 45% originating from enteric fermentation in ruminants and approximately 4% from animal waste management³.
In Brazil, it is estimated that the food system contributed 73,7% of total gross GHG emissions in 2021⁴ . During this period, beef was the product responsible for the largest share of GHG emissions , accounting for 77,6% of total food system emissions, equivalent to 57,2% of Brazil's emissions⁴.
Alternative proteins can contribute to the decarbonization of the food system
Even if all emissions from other sectors were halted in 2020 and remained at zero until 2100, emissions from the food sector would already exceed the 1,5°C limit for global temperature increase between 2051 and 2063⁵ . Global methane emissions need to be reduced by 34% by 2030 and by 45% by 2050 to achieve the projections that limit the increase in global temperature to 1,5°C³.
In the search for solutions to address this challenge, alternative proteins rank second among the most promising interventions for mitigating GHG emissions in the agri-food sector and have 9 times more mitigation potential than the second most promising intervention for reducing emissions from meat production⁶ . Some projections indicate that with an 11% share of the global protein market, the transition to alternative proteins could decarbonize the equivalent of 95% of aviation industry emissions⁷ . Furthermore, replacing 50% of the main animal-based products with plant-based products would reduce GHG emissions from agriculture and land use by 31% by 2050⁸.
SOURCE:
1 UNFCCC (2023). Nationally determined contributions under the Paris Agreement.
3 Climateworks Foundation (2023). Reducing Methane Emissions in the Global Food System.
4 SEEG-OC (2023). Estimation of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Food Systems in Brazil.
7 BCG (2022). The Untapped Climate Opportunity in Alternative Proteins.
05. Opportunities for Brazil in diversification
of agribusiness chains
Brazil plays a crucial role in global food security, being one of the largest exporters of agricultural products such as soybeans, corn and beef. This position was achieved through a combination of factors that include technological advances, adaptation of crops and agricultural practices to the tropical climate, logistics infrastructure and policies to encourage agribusiness.
In recent years, a new race has begun for leadership in the production of alternative proteins, an emerging sector that has been recognized as one of the most promising paths for adapting the food system to the reality of climate change and the risks of new pandemics. Beyond increasing the resilience of the global food system, the transition from a diet based on livestock products derived from ruminants to alternative proteins has the potential to create 83 million new jobs and generate approximately US$688 billion in Gross Value Added (GVA) for the sector by 2050¹ . To unlock all the benefits, global public funding for Research, Development and Demonstration (R&D) and commercialization needs to increase to US$4,4 billion and US$5,7 billion per year, respectively².
Camila Lupetti
Corporate Engagement Specialist
"The plant-based products market in Brazil has been growing rapidly in recent years, driven primarily by consumers seeking healthier alternatives for their daily lives. However, there are still many challenges this category must overcome to gain a foothold on consumers' tables. Competitive pricing, a satisfying sensory experience, and convenience at the time of purchase are among the main barriers to be overcome. Recent research conducted by GFI Brasil with consumers across the country points to some paths that can help the sector on this journey."
In 2023, it is estimated that global public funding to advance R&D and commercialization in the alternative protein sector was US$523 million, totaling US$1,67 billion invested to date by countries around the world with the aim of leading this emerging sector³. In Brazil, through the work of The Good Food Institute, efforts are being made to foster scientific production, consolidate innovation ecosystems, strengthen advocacy, and engage stakeholders in the sector's agenda.
Want to know more?
In the complete fact sheet you will find data related to the environmental, social and economic impacts of alternative proteins. They are separated into environmental performance , climate change , food security , health , production and consumption , natural resources and economics.
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