Transforming how protein is produced and consumed is a key leverage point in addressing climate change, biodiversity loss and public health challenges. Current food systems are highly resource-intensive and contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions, land degradation and environmental pollution. SEVEN approaches the protein transition as a systemic transformation of food systems, rather than as a narrow question of individual consumer choice. 

Within this theme, SEVEN conducts interdisciplinary research on the structural conditions that shape protein production and consumption. This includes the role of agricultural practices, supply chains, markets, regulation, pricing, cultural norms and power relations, as well as the interactions between environmental sustainability, health outcomes and social equity. 

A central focus of SEVEN’s work is on identifying and addressing systemic barriers that slow down the shift towards more sustainable protein consumption, including plant-based and alternative proteins. SEVEN studies how policy instruments, economic incentives, institutional arrangements and social practices can be redesigned to enable change at scale. 

Across this theme, SEVEN combines systems analysis with empirical research and close collaboration with policymakers, industry actors, civil-society organisations and communities. This allows SEVEN to develop actionable knowledge that supports effective and fair protein transitions — recognising that lasting change depends not only on technological alternatives, but also on governance, affordability, cultural acceptance and shared responsibility across the food system. 

The projects below illustrate how SEVEN’s research contributes to accelerating the protein transition through system-level analysis and concrete interventions in policy and practice.