Industry
More consumers than ever are demanding alternative proteins that are as delicious, affordable, and accessible as conventional products.
As a nonprofit working to build a sustainable, secure, and just food system, we partner with companies and investors across the globe to drive investment, accelerate innovation, and scale the supply chain — all faster than market forces alone would allow.
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Accelerating the alternative protein industry
Our work with global partners across the private sector advances the alternative protein industry and enables market breakthroughs. We analyze the market to identify key white spaces and emerging opportunities and provide actionable, open-source market data and consumer insights. We foster an idea-rich startup ecosystem and drive capital to scale the industry. We help guide incumbent food and meat manufacturers’ alternative protein strategy.
In short, we partner with companies throughout the supply chain to identify the most impactful business activities that will grow the bottom line and advance the next generation of alternative proteins to compete with conventional animal products on the key drivers of consumer choice: taste, price, and convenience.
Catalyzing innovation and investment
We build relationships with — and provide research and insights to — the world’s leading food and meat companies to catalyze innovation and commercialization of alternative protein products, including plant-based meat, eggs, and dairy. To inform capital providers of alternative protein opportunities, we analyze and present information on the market to a wide variety of institutions, including venture capital, private equity, family offices, banks, corporations, and investor groups. We also work with industry experts to identify, catalog, and analyze concrete white space ideas.
We provide startups with early-stage support, such as pitch deck reviews and strategic planning discussions, to help drive successful funding rounds. More than 1,300 entrepreneurs, investors, and scientists have joined our Good Food Ideas (GFIdeas) community to learn from food industry experts and make fruitful connections.
Making alternative proteins delicious and affordable
We work directly with manufacturers to identify key product opportunities, hone strategy, and accelerate the pace at which alternative protein products gain market share. We help manufacturers develop products that are as tasty, affordable, and accessible as conventional products.
Our market research highlights the rapid growth of plant-based meat, eggs, and dairy, and identifies key category opportunities. Our plant protein overview, technical guides, and company databases accelerate R&D, innovation, industry collaboration, product launch, and scaling. Our consumer insights identify current and potential consumers for alternative proteins and describe consumer motivations, adoption, perceptions, and barriers.
Expanding access & accelerating growth
We work with food retailers to identify and implement best practices for growing plant-based food sales, including strategies for assortment, own-brand product development, merchandising, and marketing. We’ve provided guidance to many of the top U.S. food retailers.
We advise executives and R&D teams at the top restaurant chains on increasing plant-based menu options and improving marketing and sales tactics. We’ve worked with influential foodservice distributors and many of the largest U.S. restaurant chains.
Areas of focus
Learn more about where GFI focuses and how we help companies up and down the supply chain.
Investment
Connect with alternative protein startups who are fundraising. Also meet co-investors and understand the market and technical landscape alternative proteins.
Entrepreneurship
Learn about planning, launching, and growing a startup — from white space identification to product development, fundraising, and commercialization.
Manufacturing & production
Capitalize on the growing alternative protein market and accelerate the pace at which your plant-based products gain market share.
Retail
Alternative proteins are a rapidly growing sales opportunity. Find strategies for product assortment, own-brand product development, merchandising, and marketing.
Foodservice
Explore market data, ideas for developing exciting dishes, and marketing strategies for launching successful plant-based items in restaurant and non-commercial foodservice channels.
Resource
Plant-based retail market overview
See an overview of U.S. retail sales data for plant-based meat, egg, and dairy products, including market size, growth, and purchase dynamics.
Recent webinars
European plant-based food market overview
GFI research analyst Kyle Gaan and ProVeg senior consumer research scientist Dr. Kai-Brit Bechtold discuss the European plant-based market.
Brazil plant-based food market overview
GFI research analyst Kyle Gaan and GFI Brazil corporate engagement coordinator Felipe Krelling summarize GFI’s Brazil Market Research Report, including high-level data on the Brazilian market, the competitive landscape, and market opportunities.
Fermentation 101
GFI startup growth specialist Nate Crosser and GFI director of science and technology Liz Specht explain the primary ways fermentation is used in alternative proteins, the competitive landscape, ingredient applications, investment trends, opportunities for innovation, and a regulatory primer.
Plant-based strategies for retail
Get an overview of leading plant-based assortment, merchandising, and marketing tactics at top U.S. retailers, with a special guest from Whole Foods Market.
Key resources
Technology and business landscape
Take a deep dive into the key technologies, business developments, and scientific advances that are propelling the industries for plant-based, cultivated, and fermentation-derived meat, eggs, and dairy.
State of the Industry Report: Plant-Based Meat, Eggs, and Dairy
This analysis of the U.S. plant-based meat, egg, and dairy market covers sales data, investment analytics, consumer insights, and more.
State of the Industry Report: Cultivated Meat
This global analysis of the cultivated meat industry covers investments, consumer insights, and scientific progress in this growing market sector.
State of the Industry Report: Fermentation
This analysis of fermentation for alternative protein production covers science, entrepreneurship, policy, and industry investments.
Key market opportunities
Our solutions database offers up ideas with the potential to accelerate the growth of the alternative protein industry. Discover ideas for new commercial ventures and products, find inspiration for research projects, and explore ecosystem-level interventions to support the alternative protein industry as a whole.
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Cultivated
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Fermentation
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Plant-Based
Decision matrix for seafood target species selection
Creating an online, open-access decision matrix tool that ranks popular seafood-relevant species against each other based on several criteria such as market size, per-unit price, sustainability of conventional production practices,…
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Cultivated
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Fermentation
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Plant-Based
Deal flow and fundraising platform for investors beyond the impact investment community
Investment platforms are needed for deal flow and coordinating hand-offs from pre-seed (angels and accelerators), seed/early-stage, and growth/later-stage investors and acquirers.
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Cultivated
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Fermentation
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Plant-Based
Infrastructure and equipment leasing fund
Infrastructure leasing for production and processing facilities as well as capital equipment would enable alternative protein companies to rapidly expand capacity without large upfront capital investments. Having leasing funds and…
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Cultivated
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Fermentation
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Plant-Based
Building workforce capacity through vocational programs
Creating vocational programs at technical community colleges that train the labor force to work in alternative protein biomanufacturing, facilities engineering, and operations will streamline the labor transition.
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Cultivated
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Fermentation
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Plant-Based
Developing open-access model production facility blueprints
Open-access blueprints would provide a head start on facility design and allow equipment manufacturers and engineering companies to address standard industry needs.
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Cultivated
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Fermentation
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Plant-Based
Infrastructure and equipment leasing fund
Infrastructure leasing for production and processing facilities as well as capital equipment would enable alternative protein companies to rapidly expand capacity without large upfront capital investments. Having leasing funds and…
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Cultivated
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Fermentation
Growth factors from conditioned cell culture media
Rather than relying on recombinant growth factors, cultivated meat companies could use conditioned media from animal cells producing high levels of these molecules.
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Plant-Based
Next-generation plant-based turkey products
There has been little in the way of publicly-announced R&D or commercial efforts to develop the next generation of tasty and affordable plant-based turkey products. There is room for innovation…
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Cultivated
Cultivated meat co-product valorization
Animal cell metabolism within cultivators can produce useful co-product side streams that provide monetary value to the manufacturer while creating a novel source of inputs for other industries. Potential side…
Increasing sales
We work directly with foodservice providers and retailers to increase sales of plant-based foods by appealing to the largest consumer groups. Our resources include best practices for marketing, merchandising, assortment, and menu design.
Consumer insights
Understand consumers, demographics, adoption, motivations, category descriptors, and opportunities for future research in alternative proteins.
Merchandising plant-based meat, eggs, and dairy at retail
Discover the best practices in retail merchandising, aisle signage, and shelf tags for plant-based meat, egg, and dairy.
Marketing and promoting plant-based proteins
This quick guide offers evidence-based marketing and promotion strategies to increase plant-based sales at retail.
Good Food Retail Report 2020
Learn plant-based sales strategies and see how the top 15 U.S. grocery retailers rate on their plant-based assortment, merchandising, and marketing.
Would you like tailored guidance on selling more plant-based foods?
Meet our experts
Caroline Bushnell
DIRECTOR OF CORPORATE ENGAGEMENT
Caroline Bushnell leads GFI’s Corporate Engagement team in their work with companies and investors around the world to accelerate the alternative protein industry.
Areas of expertise: food industry, alternative protein ecosystem, market trends, consumer insights, CPG marketing, emerging industry opportunities.
Zak Weston
FOODSERVICE AND SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGER
Zak Weston works with manufacturers, suppliers, and upstream companies to scale innovation and infrastructure investment throughout the alternative protein supply chain.
Areas of expertise: supply chains, infrastructure, ingredients, foodservice, and contract manufacturing.
Jen Lamy
SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD INITIATIVE MANAGER
Jen Lamy manages GFI’s cross-programmatic Sustainable Seafood Initiative to ensure that it proceeds strategically and with the input and involvement of key stakeholders.
Areas of expertise: alternative seafood, environmental policy, sustainable food systems, and strategic planning.
Emma Ignaszewski
CORPORATE ENGAGEMENT PROJECT MANAGER
Emma Ignaszewski manages projects to catalyze corporate innovation that will radically transform the food system and deliver alternative protein products that compete on the key drivers of consumer choice: taste, price, and convenience.
Areas of expertise: retail, strategy, marketing, communications.
Kyle Gaan
RESEARCH ANALYST
Kyle Gaan analyzes data and market research to identify meaningful insights and trends within the plant-based food industry.
Areas of expertise: consulting, market and consumer research, data analysis, video production.
