Food that Acts Like Other Food: A History

Abstract

What is the history of animal product substitutes, and why have humans created and consumed them? How long has this practice existed and in which cultures? This history of these novel foods, plant-based protein alternatives, notes a shift over time from predominantly religious to largely secular motives for avoiding meat and dairy. In recent decades plant-based meat and dairy substitutes have grown in number and use, even as Western countries have experienced a decline in organized religion. The impetus behind their production and consumption today is now predominantly secular, rather than religious, specifically environmental and animal welfare issues. This paper charts the transformation of motives and purposes behind the uses of these foods. This historical survey, while not geographically or chronologically exhaustive, is told mainly from a UK/US point of view, two societies with entrenched animal meat and dairy consumption habits. Providing examples from different cultures and periods, it divides the use of plant-based product substitutes into several periods: early to medieval civilizations; nineteenth century Western industrialization; the early twentieth century; late twentieth-century United States; and to conclude, the present day. The historical and cultural contexts provide important perspective on the current proliferation of novel plant-based meat and dairy substitutes.