Beyond Meat’s IPO, she says, marked the most successful market debut since 2000, with the stock price rocketing up by 163% by the market’s close that day.

But, she goes on, this is just one aspect of a much larger and accelerating trend: investors are capitalizing on a global shift in meat production.

GFI’s State of the Industry Reports for the plant-based and cell-based industries show that 2017 and 2018 were years of unprecedented investment in plant-based and cell-based meat companies. The past two years saw a dramatic increase in investments, acquisitions, and new companies being founded.

More than $16 billion has been invested in U.S. plant-based meat, egg, and dairy companies since 2009, including $13 billion in 2017 and 2018 alone. Of the 19 acquisitions of plant-based companies that have occurred since 2009, 10 took place in 2017 and 2018. Eleven new cell-based meat companies were founded in 2018, bringing the total number of publicly announced companies to 27.

Investor interest in plant-based and cell-based products is only gaining momentum, Allen claims – and, she adds, we’ve seen the innovation and enthusiasm driving this surge reflected in the headlines with recent product launches, menu additions, and successful venture rounds.

This past April alone, she continues, Burger King, McDonald’s Germany, QDOBA, Taco Bell, and Del Taco added plant-based meat or increased their veg options. Meanwhile, animal-free egg producer Clara Foods closed a series B, and Singapore’s cell-based meat company Shiok Meats closed a $4.6 million seed round.

GFI executive director Bruce Friedrich said: “Shifting consumer values have created a favourable market for alternatives to animal-based foods, and we have already seen fast-paced growth in this space across retail and foodservice markets.”

But we’re just at the beginning of tremendous growth period for both the plant-based and cell-based industries, Allen believes. Global meat demand is projected to double by 2050. GFI innovation director Brad Barbera points out that “capturing even a fraction of this burgeoning market would represent a massive opportunity for both plant-based and cell-based meat companies.”

The entrepreneurs and investors who are building these industries from the ground up have an unprecedented opportunity to drive and capitalize on a sea change in global meat production, Allen concludes.