Chua Hui Jin, Tracey (FASS), Faith Ong Chiu Ning (FASS), Justin Lee Kee Leong (FoS), Marion Grace Tan Leeyune (FASS), Tan Zse Fong Marcus (FoE), Tang Jia Xin, Lydia (FASS)
Academic Advisor: Mr. N Sivasothi
Industry Advisor: Vegan Burg, Whole Earth and Genesis Vegan Restaurant
In the past 50 years, a 24% increase of meat in the weight of food in the global diet has led to a 108% increase in biomass demand. The processing of livestock is considered more resource intensive (Bromberg, 2004) compared to meat analogues2 (Joshi and Kumar, 2015). Hence, the purpose of our research is to study the plausibility of introducing meat analogues into one’s diet to reduce meat consumption. Preliminary investigations through an online survey (125 respondents) reported that 98% eat meat as least once a day. Also, 61% were open to the idea of replacing actual meat with meat analogues. This was followed up with face to face interviews to affirm the authenticity of the online survey. The interviews paralleled the results obtained in the survey. Moreover, differing proportions of texturised soy protein, (20%, 40%), were tested through a blind taste test (42 respondents), in which its aim was to gauge the combination that replicated the satisfaction of real meat the most. The results showed that there was no significant difference between the taste of the food sample containing 20% of meat analogue and the control sample (100% real meat). A 20% replacement of meat with texturised soy protein, when extrapolated to the whole of NUS, would result in a reduction of approximately 25.5kg of CO2 per serving of meat consumed.4 In addition, above 88% of respondents accepted both 20%/40% of meat analogue in the samples given. With improved techniques of food processing, the possibility of a 40% replacement proportion might be more acceptable. These promising results create an avenue to (i) Conduct a taste test on a larger scale, and (ii) Collaborate with small F&B restaurants such as The Royals Bistro, to work out the feasibility of incorporating meat analogue into their menu.
Keywords: Culture and Lifestyle Trends, Responsible Consumption, Meat consumption, Diet choice, Sustainable food choices