What's on your plate?

1. Why alternative proteins?

The knowledge of animal cruelty behind meat production was my driving factor. I didn’t want to be a hypocrite - I had to change my diet.

I understood the need for some kind of substitute for - it’s a difficult change for habitual non-vegetarians to make otherwise. So I took an interest - first in cultured [i.e. lab-grown] meats, now in plant-based alternatives. I moved to plant-based meats when I realised that the technology, markets and regulations for cultured meats have a long time to reach maturity.

I now work in ProMeat [a company offering clean-label and plant-based high protein products.]

2. What does your work look like?

I work as a Business Development Specialist and in community engagement for ProMeat.

I’m actually the only member of my team based in Bangalore - all the rest are in Mumbai! But we’ll be here in Bangalore soon as well.

I build awareness for the brand products, handle sales, speak with clients, place products…since it’s a startup, my role is multifaceted.

3. What’s a good starting place for a student or someone looking to get into alternative proteins?

The Good Food Institute, for sure. Follow them on socials; they post jobs, information…and they’ll definitely get back to you if you reach out.

Altprotein.jobs is also a great site - it’s a German-based website where you can filter by location and your job role.

I would also suggest that you start working for whatever your cause is - get your hands dirty. For me, it was animal cruelty. I was volunteering at organisations working on that cause - that’s actually how I met a lot of people working in alt proteins!

Get started, and you’ll start finding the right people.

What it’s about:

• BBC journo Dan Saladino documents foods across categories - wild foods, cereals, fruits, veg, meat, stimulants, cheeses…their traditions, people, and cultures - and how they might help us prepare for a more climate-resilient and biodiverse future.

• Globalisation has homogenised our plates and palates: of the 6000 edible foods around the world, only 9 staples dominate today.

• We’re fast losing foods, and seeds, of cultural, nutritional, and environmental importance.

Why you should read it:

• foods you’ve never heard of, the geographical and cultural context they arose in - the story of so many foods in one book

• PERSPECTIVES. It will put your plate in context - what are you eating and why? what are the consequences - for you, for the planet, for the people producing food, for the multimillion dollar companies selling food and seeds?

• It reads like a really comforting documentary while giving you so much perspective.