Carnivore King Chef Francis Mallmann Sees a Meat-Free Future

(Bloomberg) -- Francis Mallmann is the king of carnivores.

The Argentine chef is famed for his open-fire barbecuing: Roasting whole animals in the wilds of Patagonia, knocking back bottles of Malbec while holding court on meaty subjects such as the best way to cook a steak. 

So you might expect him to be a little unsympathetic to vegetarians, right? Well, you would be wrong. 

“In 30 more years, we won't eat any more animals,” he says. “Meat brings so many problems, with all the effects that we have on the atmosphere by having so many animals in the world. I think it's sad, too, in a way that we're killing so many animals in some horrible ways. We're over-fishing in the seas. So I think the future lies in not eating any more animals one day.

He said he is already working on a vegan cookbook.

“My aim is to make main dishes for vegans which will be like a steak. I want them to feel that they sit down for lunch or dinner and they eat something as substantial as a steak.”

Fair enough but it would be bad news for Argentina and other countries with a large cattle industry. Doesn't that worry him?

“Change is life,” he says. “We have to learn to change.'”

Does that mean Mallmann might give up meat himself?

“Oh no, I can't predict it,” he says. “It is my first step towards it, this book."

Richard Vines is the chief food critic at Bloomberg. Follow him on Twitter @richardvines and Instagram @richard.vines.

--With assistance from Alice Cottle.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Timothy Coulter "Tim" at tcoulter@bloomberg.net

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