Global duck meat market could grow by $1.3 billion in three years

Last year, the global market grew by 2.09%, and the countries of the Asia-Pacific region are expected to achieve a CAGR of 2%.

According to market researchers Technavio, the duck meat market could grow by $1.3 billion in three years. Last year, the global duck meat market increased by 2.09%, supported by rising demand from Asia-Pacific countries such as China , Japan and Malaysia. 80% of market growth came from the Asia-Pacific region in 2019. Factors such as increased awareness of healthy eating, the convenience associated with ready-to-eat foods, and the expansion of fast food chains are driving market growth in the Asia-Pacific region. According to analysts, the growth of the market in this region will outpace the growth of the market in the Middle East and Africa. Judging by the product, the largest market growth was observed in the segment of fresh duck meat.

This is due to the growing awareness of the health benefits associated with the consumption of duck meat and the expansion of production capacity by suppliers.

Technavio estimates that the global duck meat market will grow by US$1.31 billion , with a CAGR of over 2% over the forecast period. The driving force behind the market is the growth in global duck meat production. However, the growing popularity of the vegan diet may make growth difficult.

At the same time, this segment of the poultry industry may be affected by the active development of the production of cultivated meat. In France, Gourmey just raised $10 million from private investors in a bid to develop lab-grown foie gras. This foie gras is not made from force-fed geese until their livers are fat enough. This species is grown in a cruelty-free lab using stem cells taken from duck eggs.

“There are stem cells in an egg, and they have the ability to divide and multiply indefinitely if they have the right environment. We isolate them from the egg and give them a controlled environment that replicates the environment of the egg,” explained Nicholas Morin-Forest, co-founder and CEO of Gourmey.

Cells feed on the same nutrients as duck - proteins, amino acids, lipids. “Cells proliferate as if they were in an egg, then you adjust the nutrients to produce the right type of cell. So, if you need liver cells or muscle cells, you regulate the input and the cells respond to it. Then we collect muscle, fat or liver cells and create our products,” he added.

The startup decided to focus on this gourmet product due to the ban imposed in several parts of the world on the traditionally prepared foie gras and, of course, the price of the product. Gourmey's CEO believes that it will soon be possible to produce any kind of poultry meat in laboratories thanks to this technology. Singapore is now the first country in the world to bring lab-grown chicken to the market. Other countries in Asia have advanced in developing their regulatory frameworks, as has the United States.

However, in the EU, food products must be tested for safety before they are allowed to enter the market. It is a process that can take up to five years to give a clear result on how safe these types of foods are for human consumption.