Novel Foods are Good for Planet and Health

Global food systems face the challenge of providing healthy and adequate nutrition through sustainable means, which is exacerbated by climate change and increasing protein demand by the world’s growing population. 

Novel food products made from insects, seaweed or manufactured in a laboratory are being promoted because of their ecological value. 

"With significant reductions in animal-sourced foods and substitutions with novel or future foods and plant-based protein alternatives, you can have significant reductions in environmental impacts in terms of global warming potential, land use and water use", said Rachel Mazac of the University of Helsinki. 

According to the study by Mazac, R, Meinilä, J, Korkalo, L et al, adopting a diet based on these new “sustainable” foods could reduce food-related greenhouse gas emissions by 83 percent, land use by 87 percent and water use by 84 percent. 

Published in Nature Food on April 25, 2022, the research examined new foods that are expected to become a bigger part of our diets in future years, many of which rely on high-tech methods to "grow" animal and plant cells in bioreactors. 

The novel foods studied – some of which are still on the drawing board – were: 

• Ground-up flies and crickets 
• Egg white from lab-grown chicken cells 
• A type of seaweed called kelp 
• Protein powders made from mushrooms or microbes 
• Edible algae 
• Milk, meat and berries grown from cells 

It’s noteworthy to mention too that the researchers similarly found that relatively low-tech solutions, such as cutting down on meat and eating more vegetables, had a similar impact on the planet.