The founder of Beyond Meat, America’s largest producer of plant-based meat substitutes, has advocated a tax on animal meat. According to the BBC, Ethan Brown believes that imposing a tax would solve many problems associated with the growing consumption of meat.
“I think taxing what we want to get more of and not taxing what we want to get less of … that kind of taxation scheme is interesting to me. But I have to leave it to others to work out the details,” Brown commented.
Already, he said, consumers are slowly moving to reduce their consumption of animal meat. Today, the cost of plant-based meat is relatively high for many consumers, but products from Beyond Meat and other manufacturers will gradually become more affordable over time.
Beyond Meat uses peas, beans, and soybeans, and beet juice as a coloring agent and other plant-based ingredients. The popularity of the product has multiplied in recent years. The company supplies plant-based meats to major retailers and foodservice companies, including McDonald’s, KFC, and Pizza Hut.
According to Brown, imposing a tax on animal meat would lower the cost and make plant-based products more affordable. However, critics of the new initiative agree that such a tax would harm the market and increase the cost of living. Recently, animal meat has become more expensive, while plant “non-meat” gradually becomes cheaper and narrows the gap. Worldwide sales of animal meat were estimated at $1.4 trillion in 2020, with further growth prospects. Today the value of Beyond Meat is around $7.8 billion.
