In the whirlwind of innovation and desires to come up with “the next big thing” we sometimes forget that food, for most people, is something deeply habitual with strong cultural and emotional bonds. Eating is often an automatic behaviour, layered with meaning and based in deeply rooted habits. And while consumers claim to care about the healthfulness of the products they consume, the average person does not compare nutrition panels every morning before breakfast. They may, on occasion, consider the nutritional profile of the dinners they cook, but they will still base those dinners on recipes and ingredients that they like and are familiar with.

According to recent research from the EIT Consumer Observatory, an agrifood consumer insights hub run by EU-funded EIT Food, a lot of the answers about why meat alternatives have struggled to achieve consumer acceptance can be found in this – our cultures, habits, and identities and how closely tied this is with how we eat.

“Meat carries strong cultural associations tied to tradition, religion, family, and cultural identity. For many consumers, it symbolizes home-cooked meals, celebrations, and a sense of national pride, even as they become more critical of meat — ‘commoditized’ meat, especially. One of the barriers both cultivated and plant-based meat substitutes face is that consumers see them as artificial — either highly processed or not real at all,” says Klaus G Grunert, lead of the EIT Food Consumer Observatory, in an interview with Food Ingredients First.

The EIT’s recently published report More than Meat: Unpacking Cultural Perceptions of Meat and Sustainable Alternatives in Europe is based on research with 325 people from 17 European countries. It aims to map out the cultural landscape of conventional meat in Europe to understand how alternatives can be better positioned in the future and makes a list of recommendations for producers of meat alternatives. We have summarised some of the key points here:

- Meat plays a key part in most European cultures and consumers – particularly in the north and west of Europe – are becoming more mindful of the meat that they eat, starting to think about it as less of a commodity and more a precious resource that deserves a more responsible approach.

- There is a gap between expectation and reality when it comes to meat alternatives, which creates a sense of detachment and hinders broader adoption.

- While most consumers in the study had a positive view of most plant-based narratives, they are detached from the meaning of meat and target mostly those who are already prepared to abandon meat. A key issue here is perceived over-processing and lack of indulgence; many consumers still see plant-based alternatives as something unnatural and as a sacrifice of taste and indulgence.

- Makers of cultivated and plant-based alternatives are advised to focus on positive aspects such as ethics, community and celebration while steering away from industrial, artificial, and impersonal imagery.

- In the plant-based space, there is a gap between wholesomeness and processing. Manufacturers are advised to use as few ingredients as possible and to highlight them on-pack to improve transparency. At the same time, avoiding futuristic or plastic-like aesthetics on-pack is recommended.

- Actors in the plant-based industry are also recommended to “de-ideologise plant-based” and avoid ‘rebellious’ or guilt-inducing messaging.

- Marketers of cultivated meat are recommended to humanise the science behind the product, highlight that it is still ‘real’ meat, and focus on taste, health and nutritional benefits.

To read the full study, follow this link: https://www.eitfood.eu/reports/boosting-consumer-uptake-of-sustainable-meat-alternatives#download-the-reports