Policy priorities for alternative protein

Plant-based, fermentation-made and cultivated meat offer solutions to major national and global challenges.

As an international nonprofit and think tank working towards a better food system, GFI Europe supports evidence-based policy and public research funding for these alternative proteins.

Alternative protein policy in Europe

Policy initiatives

The Good Food Institute Europe’s policy team focuses on three key areas to maximise the societal benefits of plant-based and cultivated meat.

Scientist researching plant-based meat

Public sector investment in open-access research will maximise the societal benefits of alternative proteins. Learn how GFI Europe secures public funding for research and development.

Political meeting

A clear regulatory path to market is crucial for consumer confidence in alternative proteins. Learn how GFI Europe supports evidence-based regulation.

Woman shopping

Clear labelling helps consumers to make informed and sustainable food choices. Learn how GFI Europe protects plain language for alternative proteins.

Policy approaches to address Europe’s biggest challenges

Public R&D funding and supportive policies will ensure that alternative proteins are affordable and accessible for all, helping to reduce the environmental impact of Europe’s food system, improve public health, and feed more people with fewer resources.

Forest

Meeting sustainability and health goals

Governments can’t meet their Paris climate agreement targets without building a more alternative food system. Plant-based and cultivated meat address some of the major systemic causes of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.

Alternative proteins are made in clean environments without exposure to faecal pathogens, and no antibiotics are needed – so these foods help to preserve life-saving antibiotics for human medicine. Their production eliminates zoonotic disease risks, helping tackle the leading causes of pandemics.

Transforming meat production will help governments to achieve their health and sustainability ambitions without relying on individual diet change.

Workers monitoring cultivators

Driving a strong economy

Scaling up the alternative protein sector has the potential to add $1 trillion to the global economy, and countries like Singapore and Israel are already attracting major investment by providing supportive environments for plant-based and cultivated meat companies.

Europe has the scientific expertise and business leadership to become a world-leader in this field, but risks being left behind without public investment in R&D.

Just as they fund renewable energy development, the EU and national governments must support open-access research into alternative proteins to maximise their societal benefits and create highly skilled jobs.

Family shopping in supermarket

Creating choices for consumers

Today’s food system can’t keep up with growing global demand for meat.

Plant-based and cultivated meat expand the options available to consumers and deliver the foods people enjoy today – but produced in better ways.

We support evidence-based regulation so that more foods come to market safely and properly labelled, helping consumers to make sustainable choices.




Our EU and national-level work

EU flags

Alternative proteins in the European Union

Your guide to business, science and policy of plant-based and cultivated meat in the EU.

Alternative Proteine in Deutschland

Wissenswertes zum deutschen Markt für pflanzenbasierte und kultivierte Fleisch-, Eier-, Milch- und Fischprodukte und für nachhaltige Lebensmittel auf Basis von…

Sustainable proteins in the UK

Alternative proteins in the UK

Your guide to business, science and policy of plant-based and cultivated meat in the UK.

EIT Food Protein Diversification Think Tank

GFI Europe is a founding member of EIT Food’s Protein Diversification Think Tank and our Senior Policy Manager Acacia Smith is currently Vice-President. Established in 2022, the think tank comprises a diverse range of stakeholders with the common mission of making protein diversification mainstream in Europe. As a neutral, independent body it engages all food-system stakeholders in structured discussion to identify gaps, barriers, and opportunities. It also co-creates evidence-based roadmaps and policy recommendations to drive food systems transformation. 

Collaboration

GFI Europe works with allied organisations across the continent, including:

Plant-based Food Alliance logo

Latest policy news

Survey: Germans and Austrians say consumers should have freedom to choose cultivated meat

New research in Germany and Austria has found nearly two-thirds of people believe consumers should have the choice to eat…

Picture of hands holding a nutritious plant-based ham and salad wrap. Meaty terms can help consumers understand how to use a product.

Italian Government ‘open’ to reconsidering ban on meaty terms

Italian Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida has told Parliament the government is talking to plant-based meat companies to hear their concerns…

La Commissione europea ha chiuso la procedura TRIS relativa alla legge italiana che vieta la produzione e la commercializzazione della carne coltivata

Is Italy’s cultivated meat ban unenforceable? European Commission ends TRIS review as  law did not comply with procedure’s rules

European Commission ends TRIS review as  law did not comply with procedure’s rules

Misinformation about cultivated meat brought to EU Council meeting

This week has seen the worrying and ironic spectacle of some European agriculture ministers putting a note before an EU…

plant-based ham and salamy from Vegfather on a healthy sharing board

Labelling roundup: while French court rules ‘meaty’ names on plant-based products do not confuse consumers, new Italian restrictions threaten home-grown producers

Although it was rejected at the EU level in 2020, attempts to restrict the language used by producers to describe…

An octopus swimming in the sea - demand for seafood currently threatens marine ecosystems

Meet the researcher: Expanding the tentacles of alternative seafood research with Frederico Ferreira

A researcher working to develop the first cultivated octopus product is at the heart of a €7 million project bringing…

Europe aspires to lead in cleantech and biotech – but they need alternative proteins to win the race

It’s time for policymakers to rethink their approach, and give the same level of priority to alternative proteins as they…

Research finding reached record levels in the UK in 2023

2023 was a record-breaking year for UK alternative protein research funding – here’s a recap

The results of a £15.6 million funding call round out a bumper year for British alternative protein researchers and entrepreneurs.