Our goal
The world will need to produce more protein, more sustainably, from more sources into the future.
To leverage increasing global demand for high quality protein and create new Australian protein products and ingredients that earn an additional $10 billion in revenue by 2030.
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Opportunity
The global population will reach 9.7 billion by 2050, fuelling the demand for protein.
As a major producer and exporter of protein, we can capitalise on this demand by capturing high value, high margin export market opportunities. This will build Australia's sovereign manufacturing capability and create new jobs. Australia's food industry is well placed to develop innovative, differentiated protein products that meet consumer trends and changing dietary preferences.
Potential impact
Capturing high-growth global protein markets
- New jobs in agribusiness, food processing and advanced biomanufacturing; new industries for regional Australia
- Development of sovereign manufacturing capability to deliver food security
- Access to growing export markets
- Sustainable use of natural resources; a decreased environmental footprint; and reduction in food and agricultural waste
- Optimised nutrition to meet the needs of the future consumer.
Mission focus
Our focus and plan
- Animal protein production: deliver novel functional feeds and premium protein foods for export markets.
- Plant protein for new markets: drive the immediate plant protein growth opportunity with the Australian market.
- Novel protein production systems: create new alternative protein industries based on advanced biomanufacturing.
Collaborators
Building it together
The Future Protein Mission brings together CSIRO with Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources, Meat & Livestock Australia and the Grains Research & Development Corporation along with industry partners v2food, GrainCorp, The EVERY Company, Wide Open Agriculture and start-ups such as Eden Brew.
The Mission is also working with Food Innovation Australia Limited; Austrade; Victorian, New South Wales and South Australian state governments; Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries; Western Australia’s Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development; University of Queensland, University of Sydney, University of Technology Sydney, University of NSW and Edith Cowan University.
We invite others to join us to help Australia grow its protein industry by $10 billion by 2030.
Future Protein
Australia has an exciting opportunity to put new and innovative protein on the global menu in future. This protein must be delicious and nutritious, while also addressing changing global consumer trends and dietary preferences.And right now, menus are quite literally being rewritten across Australia and around the world in surprising, unexpected and delicious ways.
Our tastes are changing. The proteins we eat and how they are created are changing too.
With evolving dietary preferences, shifting consumer behaviour, and an extra two billion hungry mouths to feed by the year 2050.
The world needs to produce more protein, more sustainably, from more sources.
From the plate, right back to the paddock, Australia is creating a sustainable and resilient food system to put unique, innovative, and nutritious proteins on the global menu.
The protein market is poised for unprecedented growth, which means more choices for all of us in our favourite restaurants, at the supermarket and on our plates at home.
These opportunities for new, high-quality, differentiated proteins are significant, lucrative, and really exciting.
Like turning lesser cuts of red meat into value-added protein powders and nutraceuticals
Developing more nutritious legumes, higher in protein, that taste even better.
Creating a new sustainable Australian white-flesh fish industry to reduce reliance on imports.
Using techniques like precision fermentation to make new yeast-based protein products
Innovating traditional protein industries to meet growing demand in Asia and implementing systems to digitally track origin, animal welfare and sustainability targets.
Developing new plant-based protein to leverage flexitarian dietary trends
And exploring non-traditional forms of protein like cultivated meat, edible insects, and even developing protein from the air.
Australian industries are in prime position to capitalise on increasing demand for proteins, with investments in new science, tech, and facilities.
Our National Science Agency CSIRO estimates that Australia could carve out a $13 billion slice of this expanding protein market, creating up to 10,000 new jobs and cementing Australian businesses as global leaders in producing new and innovative products.
A new era of protein production is upon us and the opportunity to put more innovative Australian proteins on the global menu has arrived.
And best of all, there’s a seat at this table for everyone.