Is There a Specific Role for Fungal Protein Within Food Based Dietary Guidelines? A Roundtable Discussion

Expanding and aging populations, sustainability drivers and changing attitudes to the way we eat mean that there has been growing interest in non-animal derived protein food sources. Given this shift, there has been an uprise in consumer demand and commercial innovation of meat analogues and alternative protein food sources. The question, with a focus on fungal proteins, is where to best place them within Food-based Dietary Guidelines? A Nutrition Society Member-Led meeting was convened as a roundtable on 12th February 2024 to gather views on whether there is a specific role for fungal protein within Food-based Dietary Guidelines and how this role is best communicated. The intention of the roundtable was to establish areas of consensus or any disparities, and pinpoint future research directions. The roundtable format included three contextual presentations followed by discussions around seven core statements. A group of 11 experts from academia, policymaking and industry participated. There was agreement that health and sustainability research had advanced (for mycoprotein in particular). Subsequently, there is no reason to exclude fungal-derived proteins from Food-based Dietary Guidelines. The panel agreed on the need for an updated database on mycoprotein intakes in different countries along with long-term population studies comparing fungal, plant and meat sources against health and sustainability outcomes. The consensus was that fungal-derived mycoprotein could be represented within Food-based Dietary Guidelines, within a 'non-animal/non-meat' or 'other protein' sector, or as part of a generic protein diversification message.