Synthetic materials such as Carbon, Kevlar, and Glass fibers are extensively utilized in various industries due to their superior characteristics including high stiffness, great strength, low den-sity, and high wear resistance, these advantages contributed to making them widespread in ap-plications like; aerospace, automobile, civil and electronics. This research is carried out to enhance the creep compliance of epoxy composite material by considering two types of fibers as reinforcement. A composite material is produced by combining two fibers, Kevlar fiber mixed with sika epoxy resin, along with Carbon fiber also mixed with sika epoxy resin using a Hand-Layup process. Experiments and numerical modeling are examined to offer a comprehensive understanding creep behavior of epoxy composite material in different weight ratios. Burger and Prony models are used to represent stress relaxation and creep strain of Visco-elastic material. According to the results, sika epoxy resin reinforced with Kevlar and Carbon fibers exhibits enhancement in the mechanical properties compared with pure epoxy. The use of Kev-lar/Sika epoxy composite results in higher creep compliance and modulus of elasticity compared with Carbon/Sika epoxy composite.

Environmental concerns, among other causes, are leading to meat replacement in the diet by healthy, nutritious and tasty foods. Alternative protein sources of plant origin can be an alternative to meat, but their low biological value proteins can be a problem. Novel foods, such as insect meals, can meet currently consumer demands. Therefore, this research has developed innovative prototypes of analogue burgers with animal and vegetable proteins. Concerned about health and allergies, a prototype incorporating soya to satisfy coeliacs was developed. An iterative and heuristic process was carried out to test the product development feasibility. The main raw materials used were insect flour (Tenebrio molitor), seitan and soya. In addition, oat and sodium alginate were used as binders. Shelf-life of the new product was evaluated by physicochemical (pH, aw, moisture, colour, acidity and peroxide index) and sensory analysis (quantitative analysis -QDA-). The production of the burger analogues was feasible. Product characterisation showed significant differences (p < 0.05) among samples for organoleptic properties, highlighting texture changes. Using a multivariate model, it was established “The best before date” at 7 days for all developed prototypes, conditioned by microbial growth. Finally, the spoilage model indicated an important contribution to bacterial growth with a notable modification in the pastiness and hardness of the burger analogues developed.

Beef has one of the highest climate footprints of all foods, and therefore the hamburger has been targeted for substitution by numerous plant-based alternatives. However, many consumers find the taste of these alternatives lacking, and thus we proposed a hybrid meat and plant-based burger as a lower threshold alternative for these consumers. The burger was made from 50% meat (beef and pork, 4:1) and 50% plant-based ingredients, including texturised legume protein and had a climate footprint less than half that of a beef burger. Texture and sensory properties were evaluated instrumentally and through a consumer survey (n = 381) using the check-all-that-apply (CATA) method. Moisture properties indicated a significantly juicier eating experience for the hybrid compared to a beef burger, which was supported by the CATA survey. From texture profile analysis the hybrid burger was significantly softer and less cohesive than a beef burger. Despite having different CATA term profiles overall liking of the hybrid and a beef burger were not significantly different. Penalty analysis indicated that “meat flavour”, “juiciness”, “spiciness”, and “saltiness” are the most important attributes for a burger. In conclusion, consumers may be open to reducing their meat consumption by way of hybrid meat and plant-based products.

As the world attempts to decarbonise the food industry and limit greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, plant-based meat analogues (PBMAs) have emerged as a sustainable alternative to traditional meat. This study implemented a life cycle assessment (LCA) to rigorously compare the environmental impacts of a beef burger (BB), produced with British beef, against a meat analogue (MA) equivalent with a publicly available recipe. For the LCA, a cradle-to-fork system boundary was utilised, alongside a functional unit of a single 100 g burger patty. Results from the LCA revealed that the BB patty had more than double the total environmental impact than the MA equivalent, as well as possessing a global warming impact that was 62% higher. A simple extrapolation illustrated that if the UK population switched from beef to meat analogue patties, 3 million tonnes of CO2e could be saved annually, corresponding to 0.74% of the country’s yearly territorial GHG emissions. Scenario analyses displayed how the environmental impact of the MA patty remained stable regardless of changes in exportation, ingredient origin or soy protein sourcing. Moreover, sensitivity analysis conducted with an alternative characterisation method corroborated initial findings, whilst uncertainty analysis ensured that nearly all conclusions generated from the original comparison were robust. Future studies should conduct peer-reviewed LCAs on PBMA patties with commercial recipes based on other plant-based proteins, as well as fully understanding any potential health implications of long-term PBMA consumption.