Disruptive though these trends may be, the revolution is more fundamental and far-reaching. And it is being propelled by profound changes in technology, the natural world and people’s needs and their numbers.

In developed countries and among the growing middle classes of the developing world, consumer power is driving demand for healthier diets, including alternatives to meat and dairy. A flowering of innovation in food tech and agritech is both enabling and responding to this shift, growing the market for plant-based alternatives, spawning a new category of lab-grown proteins, and cultivating more sustainable means of food production.

Two other powerful and inter-linked forces are at work. Together, the climate emergency and population growth are already testing the global food system to breaking point. Modern agriculture and food chains are intensifying global heating and exhausting natural capital. Increasing current production methods to feed a global population of nearly 10 billion people by 2050 would require the resources of three planet earths.