Kicking Off New Conversations on Meat’s Future

As the Meat Institute’s Chief Strategy Officer and having participated in the founding of the Protein PACT, I’m keenly aware that there are a lot of heated debates on meat’s future. So, I thought I’d try something new – each month, I’ll publish a LinkedIn article sharing my thoughts, spotlighting leaders across animal agriculture, or sharing our work to move the needle and earn trust from key audiences about how eating meat can sustain the future.

First, let me introduce (or, for many of you, reintroduce) the Protein PACT. The Protein PACT encompasses the Meat Institute’s continuous improvement framework and is also a collaboration across the animal agriculture supply chain, aimed at amplifying and communicating partners’ efforts.

Protein PACT partners represent producers and processors from every sector of animal agriculture, and we are proud to share with them a common vision and commitment to driving solutions. For our part, the Meat Institute has publicly committed to measurable targets across key focus areas. In 2022, we created the first-ever sector-wide datasetand publicly reported on progress.

Over the last year and accelerating in 2023, the Protein PACT has prioritized engaging new audiences to share our actions to put this framework into practice. We are eager to engage in every part of conversations about healthy diets and sustainable food systems, and to do so constructively – sharing credible data about our ambitions for the future and how today’s progress helps achieve global goals.

In the first quarter of this year, we’ve been honored to join audiences from the Annual Meat Conference cohosted with Protein PACT endorser FMI the Food Industry Association to the Culinary Institute of America. I have had the opportunity to join Food Tank‘s peer group for Chief Sustainability Officers and Impact Directors. In the near future, we’ll host a webinar with GreenBiz Group, speak at The Economist sustainability week,and participate in the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM4C) summit.We view these engagements not as a one-way street of presentations, but rather as a meaningful opportunity for dialogue.

We want to receive and answer tough questions – and be transparent about where we don’t yet have answers. We are working hard to accurately report baselines and measure progress, building the sector’s knowledge base along the way and helping to disseminate best practices and resources for companies of all sizes.

If you’d like to know more about the Protein PACT, this 2 minute video is a great introduction. If you have a little more time, check out the 9 minute version that features producer perspectives, as well as interviews with Meat Institute members about their individual sustainability journeys. You can also explore our partners’ goals and the Meat Institute’s first data report here.

We take very seriously the imperative to produce the nutrient-dense food people need to thrive while protecting the land, air, and water we all share. I look forward to sharing more about where we’re going and how we plan to get there.

Do you have feedback? My door is always open, and I firmly believe our collective achievements are stronger when we find ways to work toward common goals – please reach out.

Read the article on LinkedIn