Current Event: A Meat Alternative

One of my goals for this quarter in order to reduce my carbon footprint was to reduce my consumption of beef to only 2x per month. Since making the goal, I have decided to completely take beef out of my diet the reasons being (1) I don't eat beef that often anyways, so why not just kick it out of my diet? and (2) Livestock farming is one of the biggest contributors to a person's carbon footprint.

Impossible Foods, a sustainable food company in California, recently raised their funding by $108 million, and they are continuing to rise. They are focused on producing meat and dairy that are strictly made from plant ingredients. The greenhouse gas emissions that come from livestock farming are greater than cars, trains and airplanes combined, which is a huge reason why the shift to plant-based diets is important. Impossible Foods uses heme in their meat, a molecule found in hemoglobin and other proteins that gives blood its red pigment. Heme is considered the "secret" to meat flavor. Impossible Foods has raised enough money to bring their new product to market, and in the process, they are influencing other food companies to try producing alternatives to meat as well. These alternatives are both tasty and sustainable, giving an incentive to take the plunge and make the change.
Meat production will eventually have to change, and with that, so will meat consumption. Our meat consumption cannot be sustained forever. Impossible Foods is forward thinking and sustainably geared towards the future. It will take investing in more companies like Impossible Foods in order for the world of meat and dairy consumption to truly take a turn. We will be seeing burgers from Impossible Foods coming in 2016 across the U.S. I look forward to giving one a try : )

Source: http://www.sustainablebrands.com/news_and_views/startups/hannah_furlong/investors_gave_sustainable_food_startup_108m_do_impossible