Feature

The spots first appeared on the Wappels’ farm in September 2018, late in the growing season. Eric Wappel snapped photos of corn leaves flecked with constellations of tiny, black bumps. A third-generation grower, Wappel was familiar with the symptoms of gray leaf spot and northern corn leaf blight on the 9,000 acres he farms with his father and brother outside San Pierre in northwest Indiana. This, he did not recognize.

The United States spends more on healthcare than any other nation in the world, doubling that of other developed nations.

As consumers explore the array of options available to them in grocery aisles, some are trying new meat alternatives, from plant based brands such as Beyond and Impossible to updated takes on the traditional veggie burger. These novel options may be just the start of a new wave of alternative proteins, born in the laboratory and coming soon to a grocery aisle near you.