Every day, when I take a (necessary) break from bird-dogging news and writing, I scroll through the images in my favorite Facebook Group, “Liminal Spaces.” The eerie, empty and usually beautiful photos record that transitional space or period, when the situation is no-longer-that but not-yet-what-it-will-be. I love the idea of always being on the way to somewhere, a future or a destination that’s not yet defined.

Liminal spaces or liminal periods often are deeply unsettling. Think: Long, empty hotel hallways in the middle of the night. Or, the process of moving to a new location far from where you started. Those first months after collecting your diploma — now what?

Unsettling, yes, but also bristling with possibility.

I certainly think of the meat industry as going through a liminal period, one that has lasted perhaps some decades, although its beginnings probably went unnoticed by most. Red meat consumption per capita has been dropping in developed countries since the 1970s, even as poultry has steadily grown. More recently the rise of a new generation of meat alternatives has challenged the entire animal protein sector, even if the challenge is, so far, more bark than bite out of market share.

Growing demand internationally has kept the North American red meat and poultry industries healthy overall, but survey after survey shows that the younger the consumer in developed economies, the less animal protein he or she eats. The political and environmental opposition to the animal protein business has raised the volume of the social discourse to the point that ignoring it is impossible.

So, the sector is in a liminal space, somewhere in transition from a comfort food and comfortable way to make a living to … what? Fifteen or 50 years from now, where will red meat and poultry be in the diet, as a way to make a living, as an industry?

I see a couple of negative answers to those questions, and many, many more possibilities for positive outcomes.

Research being done at the beginning of the supply chain promises healthy animals that also produce more nutrition per ounce while having less of an effect on the land, water and air. Changes to the physical environs in which the animals are raised, even if they’re not exactly made voluntarily, may yield benefits that companies haven’t yet accounted for. The poultry and meat business has a long history of improving food safety, shelf life and other aspects of that last mile to the consumer’s plate. Some of the biggest leaps forward in those areas may be yet to come.

In 15 or 50 years, “meat” will play a different role in society. Our children’s children will get their protein in ways we haven’t even thought of yet. As uncomfortable as a period of transition is, I see many companies in our industry seizing the opportunity to make the changes rather than be made to change by others. And, I hear a lot of executives who seem only to be able to complain that it ain’t like it used to be.

Where will this road take you and your company? And, are you prepared for that destination?

To an unknown destination

Join for free* to continue reading.