05/08/24 Meat (R)evolution
Presenting the "Meat (R)evolution" guide with plant-based kebab, filet mignon, nuggets, sausages, and burgers
- 10/05/2024, Radićeva Street 9, 10 a.m.: presenting the guide on creating meat without animals
On Friday, May 10, 2024, at 10 a.m., in the OAZA Joyful place hall at Radićeva Street 9 in Zagreb, Animals Friends Croatia will host a promotion of the "Meat (R)evolution" guide, a useful resource for learning about plant-based meat. The guide will be briefly presented by Tin Pažur, CEO of a plant-based meat production company, Tin Rudnički, president of the Alt Protein Project at EIT Food association (an initiative of The Good Food Institute) and Luka Oman, president of the Animal Friends Croatia association.
The aim of the guide is to increase the number of plant-based meat options in catering establishments. Therefore, Animal Friends Croatia will distribute the guide free of charge to more than 1,000 restaurants across Croatia, as well as to other relevant institutions.
Plant-based meat substitutes such as tofu, tempeh, and various other soy products have existed for thousands of years. In some countries, the plant-based meat industry dates back to the 19th century, and several of today's leading companies in the production of plant-based meat were founded from the 1970s to the 1990s.
The plant-based meat market expanded significantly when companies began mass-producing hamburgers and other products that are almost indistinguishable from animal meat in terms of texture, taste, and smell. Vegans and vegetarians weren’t the only ones buying these products; everyone began to mass-consume them, regardless of their dietary habits. Vegan sausages, salami, burgers, pâtés, nuggets, and even vegan filet mignon are now available on our market, and some of these will be available for tasting during the promotion of the "Meat (R)evolution" guide.
Due to its composition, plant-based meat is healthier than animal meat – it contains high-quality proteins, is rich in minerals and vitamins, and does not contain saturated fatty acids, cholesterol, or nitrates. The protein sources are not genetically modified and such meat has fewer calories. Additionally, plant-based meat is much more environmentally friendly and helps prevent climate change. It eliminates the need to rear and kill animals, uses far fewer natural resources, and conserves drinking water.
In addition to explaining how plant-based meat is created, the "Meat (R)evolution" guide also covers the topic of cultivated meat, which is produced directly from animal cells. The process of growing cultivated meat uses the basic elements needed to build muscle and fat while ensuring the same biological process that occurs inside the animal, but in so-called cultivators. At the cellular level, this meat is identical to conventional meat, but it does not require farms or slaughterhouses for its production. Professor Mark Post and his team from Maastricht University presented the first cultivated hamburger in August 2013. In 2016, the first cultivated meat company went public, and in 2020, the first cultivated meat product was sold. Today, there are more than 150 companies involved in the production and improvement of cultivated meat, and soon this life-saving technology will be available in stores.
Various studies show that cultivated meat would use land 60 to 300 percent more efficiently than poultry farming and even 2,000 to 4,000 percent more efficiently than beef farming. Cultivated meat also eliminates the risk of fecal contamination because it does not require the confinement of millions of animals. This type of meat does not require the use of antibiotics and does not pose the risk of pandemics and various diseases that arise and spread from animal husbandry.
"It is important to spread accurate information about cultivated meat and to promote the amazing benefits of the already available plant-based meat. Knowing how to use and prepare such meat is essential for the necessary transformation of food production in favour of sustainable living and stopping climate change," said Vlatka Balaš Cerjak, project coordinator at Animal Friends Croatia.
Animal Friends Croatia will also publish a free online version of the "Meat (R)evolution" guide, serving as an excellent source of information for anyone wanting to learn about the production of plant-based and cultivated meat. The guide also provides a variety of useful tips and recipes for dishes that everyone will be eager to try, regardless of their eating habits, some of which include plant-based sausages, čobanac (meat stew), meatloaf, sarma (stuffed cabbage rolls) and shepherd's pie.
See the photo gallery from the promotion of the guide by clicking HERE.
![revolution of meat [ 198.59 Kb ]](/data/image_3_16591.jpg "revolution of meat [ 198.59 Kb ]")
