Egg Substitute, What’s the Global Impact?

CBC radio in 2013 reported on a new egg substitute made from plants which the company Hampton Creek believes taste just like real eggs. They have egg substitutes for baking which are currently used in various products. They are currently working on a liquid egg substitute which will allow scrambling, which they claim will cook, look, and taste like the real thing for a fraction of the cost to produce and ship. I started to think of this in terms of how this will affect global economics?

There are over 6.5 billion egg-laying hens around the world each able to potentially lay 300 eggs/year. www.worldpoultry.net (2013) reported the global trade of eggs in 2012 was about 127 million dozen worth $122 million which was up 59%. Some of the top exporters are Hong Kong, Canada, and Mexico.

Question?

What would be the global impact if this egg substitute becomes a success?  Maybe a better question to ask is how does new technologies and innovations affect global and local economies? Would countries impose tariffs to help out farmers and limit this new product?

The Eggs got me to thinking; is the global economy a reason why governments have yet to totally embrace forms of energy other than oil?  We have had the technology since the 1980’s to produce electric batteries which are highly efficient.  We do have complete electric vehicles; however, the push seems to be for hybrids and better fuel efficiency. In Canada alone, goals have been set at 500,000 electric cars on the road by 2020, which is only about 1.5% (total Canadian cars, just over 33 million). This seems very low considering the impact oil has on the environment. I can see the global economy changing significantly if the world no longer required oil for transportation. Oil producing economies would drastically change as well. Would they be able to adapt to the new world without the need for gasoline? I can’t help but think that this plays a major role in government policy.

Automobiles imported from outside North America usually have tariffs, what would happen if a larger tariff were to be placed on gasoline vehicles, and little to none on electric vehicles?

What are your thoughts on tariffs, good or bad?

References

CBC news http://www.cbc.ca/newsblogs/yourcommunity/2013/03/us-candy-company-makes-safer-kinder-egg-substitute.html 

International egg commission https://www.internationalegg.com/corporate/eggindustry/details.asp?id=18

US poultry and egg exports break records (2012) http://www.worldpoultry.net/Broilers/Markets--Trade/2013/2/2012-US-poultry-and-egg-exports-break-records-1174390W/