NWO grants 1 million for research into plant-based alternatives

A consortium of Utrecht University, TU Delft and Wageningen University was granted EUR 1 million by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) for their research ‘Accelerating the transition to plant-based proteins’.  

Since the environmental impact of meat and dairy production is immense, Utrecht University, TU Delft and Wageningen University will research what needs to be done to enable consumers to switch to vegetable alternatives to these products. Currently, the meat and dairy industry is responsible for 16.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, that is as much as all internal combustion engines combined. Vegetable proteins have a much lower environmental impact. 

The research grant for ‘Accelerating the transition to plant-based proteins’ comes from the NWO’s ‘Transitions and Behaviour’ programme, which specifically focuses on behavioural research with which transitions can be realised and accelerated. For their research, the universities are also collaborating with multinationals Unilever and Danone Nutricia. (MvdV)