With all the environmental and health concerns associated with animal protein, it’s been tough to be a meat producer during the last few years. In spite of all that, beef production and overall meat consumption continues to rise.###Last year, consumers ate 222.2 pounds of red meat and poultry each, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. On average, that’s 10 ounces of protein a day — well over the 5 to 6.5 ounces recommended by the USDA for a healthy diet. Perhaps the rise of eating patterns like the paleo diet, which emphasizes protein, contributed to consumer demand and helped meat sales for continue to be sizzling hot.###Despite its popularity, meat has been found to contribcalcium citrate malate vitamin d3 magnesium tabletsute to less-thmagnesium lactate brand namean-desirable health outcomes in several scientific studies. While individual studies can be brushed off and ignored,ferrous fumarate and folic acid use the cumulation of these findings may get consumers’ attention — or at least push them toward more plant-based options.###In any case, the tide is undoubtedly turning toward plants and companies are paying attention. The Good Food Institute, whose mission is to accelerate the growth of plant- and cell-based products, estimated investors have put more than $16 billion into alternative meat companies in the past decade — $13 billion of it incan coq10 help with sleep 2017 and 2018. The wild success of startups — including Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods — spurred large CPG titans into action. Companies including Tyson, Perdue Farms and Nestlé trying to take a bite out of the segment.###Brands like Hormel’s Applegate and Tyson’s new Raised & Rooted are trying to take meatferrous bisglycinate vs heme iron eaters halfway there with hybrid offerings that combine meat and plant protein.###While hybrid burgers may not be the way forward, there is still hope for the meat industry as a whole. Options like grass-fed and free-range are popular with consumers who are looking to eat responsibly but still want to enjoy some good old-fashioned meat. Retail sales of fresh grass-fed beef increased from just $17 million in 2012 to $272 million in 2016. This year’s Food Marketing Institute and North American Meat Institute’s recent “Power of Meat” report said that 54% of consumers would like more grass-fed items in stores.