A VC outlook on Meat-Free products
Eric Bernos, Venture Partner Europe at Agroecology Capital
Agroecology Capital’s venture partner Eric Bernos on the panel* “The VC Outlook on Meat-Free” at the 14th Plant-Based Foods Summit Europe 2019
Is there a future for meat-free products in Europe?
Studies showed that customers’ expectations regarding meat products involve food safety, pleasure (taste and texture), animal well-being, sustainability, and health. The ability of the industry to meet some or all of these attributes will be crucial to create new meat-free product categories.
Meat-Free products: what are the main challenges of the European market?
The high number of ingredients in meat-free products might raise consumers’ concern about health impact (even if these ingredients are natural). Moreover, the tech nature of these products might lead consumers to relate them to processed food, which suffers from a negative perception in Europe.
How do VCs look at the European market?
Meat-free production is a constant tech and innovation challenge. The U.S. is currently leading the R&D in this space. VCs tend to invest where innovation and founding teams are located. We believe that meat is not a commodity product anymore and that meat-free production has become a tech/innovation/patent competition, which is a source of massive opportunities.
What will be the primary driver of consumers’ demand in the coming years?
Meeting the attributes and hitting the price point!
Who will be the winners & losers in this business?
We believe that developing a mass-market retail strategy will necessarily involve strategic partnerships with established international players at each level of the value chain. Ventures that will be able to develop such partnerships will have a strong competitive edge to position themselves as leaders in the industry.
What are the main differences between the U.S. and European markets?
U.S. incumbents (meat producers) have been exposed to disruption and innovation threats for a longer period of time. This has given them additional time to adapt to the meat-free revolution. Subsidy policies for meat production might also slow down adoption by setting up artificially low meat prices.
For startups, scaling new technologies requires large addressable markets. Innovation providers might consider Europe as fragmented and heterogeneous in terms of retailer’s typology, consumer expectations, and regulations.
*Panel participants:
- Eric Bernos, Partner, Agroecology Capital
- Kim Odhner, Managing Partner, Europe & Asia, New Crop Capital
