Minnesota’s Alt-Meat Revolution
“Minnesota’s Alt-Meat Revolution" is a video and print journalism collaboration project, looking into the roots and impact of the plant-protein phenomenon that’s exploding across the globe. The project is a partnership between Pioneer PBS, West Central Tribune and WORLD Channel, with funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The project features six stories examining the impact of plant-based proteins on agricultural, cultural and dietary trends in the rural community of Dawson, Minnesota.
Episode 1
Upper Midwest Emmy Award nominee
The Smell of Money
Plant-based meat replacements are the food innovations of the 21st Century. But in Dawson, Minnesota, local industry has been plant based for over 70 years! Since 1951, soybean processing has dominated Dawson’s economy – what lessons can be learned by looking back to Dawson’s early advances in the plant-based marketplace?
Episode 2
Upper Midwest Emmy Award recipient
The Great Burger Taste-Off
Dive into the motivations behind PURIS, the largest processor of yellow pea protein in North America. In 2018 and 2019, Cargill invested a combined $100 million in PURIS, which led the company on a path to Dawson, Minnesota where they purchased and retrofitted a facility to be a state-of-the-art yellow field pea processing facility. This facility is the largest operating yellow field pea processing facility in North America.
Episode 3
Upper Midwest Emmy Award nominee
Give Peas a Chance
Learn about how PURIS, the largest operating processor of pea protein in North America, sources their peas and how peas fit into Minnesota’s ag landscape. Hear from farmers in Langdon, ND and Dawson, MN about why they do or don't grow the PURIS pea. Learn about the role that crop insurance plays in the business of farming and how farmers are thinking about improving soil health and water quality
Episode 4
What’s for Dinner?
The residents of the small rural community of Dawson, Minnesota recently welcomed a new neighbor — PURIS, the largest processor of yellow pea protein in the country. This episode explores if the presence of the new processing plant has driven local people to eat more plant-based proteins.
Episode 5
Everybody Loves Jobs
Explore the impact that PURIS – the largest operating processor of pea protein in North America – had on the local job, childcare and housing economies in the small, rural town of Dawson.
Episode 6
Chews Wisely
The sixth and final episode of “Minnesota’s Alt-Meat Revolution” explores the impact of the food that we eat on soil quality.