Mix insect, plant, and cultivated proteins for healthier, greener, tastier food, say experts

(Press-News.org) Reducing industrial animal use can help to shrink our carbon footprint and boost health—but doing so means we need nutritious meat alternatives that are also tasty and affordable.  

This is according to a new Frontiers in Science article in which researchers reveal how hybrid foods, which combine proteins from different sources, could be part of the solution.  

The researchers say that by using combinations of different proteins from plants, fungi, insects, microbial fermentation, and cultivated meat, we could create tasty, nutritious, and sustainable alternatives to animal products.  

As well as tackling environmental concerns, hybrids could also help to address the health and ethical impact of livestock farming such as animal welfare, zoonotic disease, and antimicrobial resistance. 

“Hybrid foods could give us delicious taste and texture without breaking the bank or the planet,” said first author Prof David L. Kaplan from Tufts University in the US. “Using protein alternatives needn’t necessarily come with financial, taste, or nutritional costs.” 

For example, by drawing on the fibrous texture of mycelium, the sensory and nutritional qualities of cultivated meat, the nutrition and sustainability of insects, the proteins, pigments, enzymes, and flavors from microbial fermentation, and the abundance and low cost of plants, hybrids could combine the best of each protein source, say the authors. 

But to make this happen, the researchers call for regulatory review and academic and industry cooperation to overcome hurdles and find the best possible protein combinations for our health, sensory, environmental, and cost needs. 

“To succeed, we need research and cooperation across science, industry, and regulators to improve quality, scale production, and earn consumer trust,” added Prof Kaplan. 

More than the sum of their parts 

The researchers investigated different protein sources: plants (for example, soy products like tofu), insects (processed into flours and blended into foods), mycelium-based products (such as vegan commercial meat analogs), cultivated meat grown in bioreactors, and microbial fermentation products (such as proteins, pigments, enzymes, and flavors). 

They assessed the strengths and weaknesses of each protein source and considered how to harness the best qualities of each—both with and without animal meat. For example, while plant proteins are cheap and scalable, they often lack the flavor and texture of meat. Meanwhile, cultivated meat more closely mimics animal meat but is expensive and hard to scale. Mycelium can add natural texture, while insects offer high nutrition with a low environmental footprint. 

The researchers reviewed various combinations to compare their sensory and nutritional profiles, consumer acceptance, affordability, and scalability. 

They found that while every protein source has drawbacks, combining them can overcome many of these limitations. In the short term, plant–mycelium hybrids appear most economically viable because they are scalable, nutritious, and already used in commercial products. In the longer term, plant–cultivated meat hybrids may become more desirable, as even small amounts of cultivated cells can improve taste, texture, and nutrition once production costs fall and capacity expands. 

They also point to early studies which found that substantial fractions of meat in burgers or sausages can be replaced with plant proteins without reducing consumer acceptance, and even small additions of cultivated meat or mycelium can improve the taste, texture, and nutrition of plant-based products. 

“No single alternative protein source is perfect, but hybrid products give us the opportunity to overcome those hurdles, creating products that are more than the sum of their parts,” said senior author Prof David Julian McClements from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, US. 

Overcoming hurdles 

As well as benefits, each protein source presents its own limitations which must be addressed before their resulting hybrids can become mainstream meat alternatives, according to the researchers.  

The processing necessary for cultivating meat or combining proteins brings high costs and difficulties with scaling up production. Some protein sources need more consistent, less fragmented regulation, and others, like insect protein, face high consumer skepticism. Many edible insects are highly nutritious and environmentally friendlier to raise than animals, and over two billion people worldwide already regularly eat insects—but consumers in developed countries are often less willing to do so. 

Another concern is that many current plant-based meat alternatives require numerous ingredients and extensive processing, and are therefore classified as ultra-processed foods (UPFs), which consumers may view as unhealthy. Observational studies show correlations between high UPF consumption and adverse health outcomes, though causation has not been established. However, the authors note that hybrids—by drawing on the natural benefits of each source—could help reduce our reliance on additives and heavy processing. 

The researchers are therefore working to ensure these products are healthy as well as acceptable to consumers. Future research, they say, should focus on optimizing protein sources, developing scalable production methods, conducting environmental and economic analyses, and using AI to identify new hybrid combinations and processing methods. 

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