Rethinking what we eat is essential if we hope to nourish ourselves sustainably and mind the climate. One option is to seek out alternative food sources from the sea. All the way at the bottom, where algae, cephalopods and tiny fish thrive, according to a new study.

More and more people are opting to become vegetarians or, even more radically, vegans.

However, the large majority of people find it difficult to entirely shelve meat in the name of preventing climate change, according to Professor Ole G. Mouritsen of the University of Copenhagen’s Department of Food Science.

«Many people simply crave the umami flavor that is, for example, found in meat. Therefore, it may be more realistic to consider a flexitarian diet, where one consumes small quantities of animal products, such as meat, eggs and milk, alongside vegetables. However, one can also begin thinking about alternatives to the juicy steak — of which there are many,» he says.

In a new meta-study, Professor Mouritsen and PhD student Charlotte Vinther, his colleague at the Department of Food Science, pick up on today’s food trends.

They present alternative sources for protein and healthy fatty acids, while giving their take on what a sustainable diet of the future might look like.

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