Why cultivated meat is still so hard to find?

In the summer of 2013, a small group gathered in London, resembling a TV set for a cooking show. A man in a white coat and chef’s hat prepared a burger while being filmed by a camera. Food critic Hanni Ruetzler sat nearby, ready to taste the lab-grown burger that had garnered significant attention and a hefty price tag of £215,000 ($330,000). With all eyes on her, Ruetzler delicately cut into the burger and took a bite, offering her thoughts to a room full of journalists. As the cameras zoomed in, she politely commented on the taste and texture, noting that it resembled meat but lacked juiciness. Her mention of missing salt and pepper drew amusement from the audience. Reflecting on the video years later, the author ponders the future of cultivated meat and its potential to become more accessible as interest in meat alternatives grows due to concerns about meat consumption’s impact on the environment.

Tasneem Karodia, co-founder of Mzansi Meat Co, explains that the cultivated meat industry is still in its early stages but experiencing significant expansion. Initially, there were only a few companies involved, but now there are over 100 in the field. These companies are cultivating a variety of meats, including lamb, duck, beef, chicken, fish, and more. The industry has attracted substantial investment, with billions of dollars being poured into these companies, according to The Good Food Institute.

But what exactly is cultivated meat?

Karodia describes cultivated meat as the process of replicating the same biological process that occurs inside an animal but outside of the animal’s body. In other words, lab-grown meat is genetically identical to conventional meat.

The process begins with a small biopsy, about the size of a peppercorn, taken from an animal without causing harm. This biopsy is then placed in a bioreactor, which resembles the vats used in brewing beer. The bioreactor contains a nutritious broth that provides the necessary nutrients for cell growth.

Karodia mentions that her company’s broth currently includes fetal bovine serum (FBS), which has raised concerns as it is obtained from cow fetuses. Karodia and her team are actively seeking alternatives to replace FBS, although a solution has not been found yet. However, even if FBS continues to be used, it would still result in a significant reduction in the number of animals raised and slaughtered for consumption.

According to Josh Tetrick, CEO of Eat Just, another cultivated meat company, this approach eliminates the need for vast amounts of land to grow feed crops for livestock. Consequently, it reduces emissions and makes it a more sustainable way of producing meat for the future. Tetrick envisions a future where lab-grown meat replaces conventional meat entirely.

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Various studies and reports from think tanks and consultancies have supported these claims, suggesting that cultivated meat has the potential to substantially reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Some studies have found that lab-grown meat could result in 74-96% fewer emissions compared to conventional meat, with larger reductions seen in high-polluting livestock like beef and lamb, and slightly lower reductions in poultry and fish.

On the other hand, it is worth mentioning that these studies also agree that cultivated meat might still have a greater environmental impact compared to most plant-based meat alternatives. Additionally, some studies suggest that it could potentially be worse for the climate than conventional livestock due to the substantial amount of energy required for meat production and the cultivation process. It is important to recognize that these studies are attempting to model a system that is not yet fully established on a large scale, leading to some discrepancies in their findings.

Nevertheless, there is growing consensus within the scientific community that the current scale of livestock farming is unsustainable. The environmental issues associated with meat production, such as greenhouse gas emissions and ecological problems, are widely acknowledged. Despite this awareness, global meat production is projected to double by 2050 as a result of increasing population and higher income levels, enabling greater meat consumption.

JingJing Liu’s research has revealed that approximately half of the people surveyed in various countries, ranging from China to Cameroon, would be willing to try lab-grown meat if it proves to be more environmentally friendly than conventional livestock.

While cultivated meat may start to replace some traditional meat products, the notion that it could become the primary alternative to conventional meat is still under debate.

Currently, there is only one country in the world where lab-grown meat is available for consumption. However, it is only offered in one restaurant and solely on Thursdays. Since January 2022, Huber’s Butchery in Singapore has been serving cultivated chicken strips in various dishes, including pasta and sandwiches. The availability of lab-grown meat in Singapore can be attributed to factors such as limited land availability, high food import dependence, and a strong focus on food security. The government of Singapore has provided tax incentives and subsidies to companies like Eat Just, which produces the cultivated chicken for Huber’s Butchery.

Despite the support received, the production volume of lab-grown chicken remains relatively low, with only a few kilograms being grown each week, equivalent to the meat from a single chicken. To increase production capacity and reduce costs, larger bioreactors are needed, according to Tetrick. However, scaling up the process poses both engineering and capital challenges, requiring significant investments ranging from hundreds of millions to billions of dollars to construct suitable facilities.

Tetrick acknowledges that the scale-up process may not be successful, but believes that it is a risk worth taking.

Eat Just and other cultivated meat firms located on the west coast of the United States have been granted approval by the FDA for some brands of lab-grown chicken to be considered safe for consumption. However, these companies are still awaiting inspection by the US Department of Agriculture before they can legally sell their products, a step expected to occur in 2023. In India, the government is providing funding for research in the field of cultivated meats. On the contrary, there are plans in Italy’s parliament to prohibit all forms of lab-grown meat due to concerns about preserving the country’s culinary traditions.

In many countries, regulatory frameworks have not kept up with the advancements in cultivated meat technology. This absence of legal classification hinders the sale of lab-grown meat in certain jurisdictions. Moreover, companies must demonstrate the safety of their products, which adds further challenges to the regulatory process. Overcoming these regulatory hurdles will take time.

Interestingly, there is a clear demand for lab-grown meat among consumers, according to JingJing Liu, a meat research officer at Teagasc, the Agriculture and Food Development Authority of the Republic of Ireland. Liu’s surveys across different countries have shown that roughly half of the respondents, from China to Cameroon, would be willing to try lab-grown meat if it proved to be more environmentally friendly than conventionally produced meat.

However, proving this environmental benefit will be difficult until the cultivated meat industry achieves significant scale. Currently, each company employs its own unique method of producing lab-grown meat. Generally, the growth media or broth used to cultivate meat cells is similar to what is used in pharmaceutical applications such as vaccine development.

A pre-print study suggests that using pharmaceutical-grade media could result in cultivated beef having a climate impact four to 25 times higher than conventionally reared beef. Tasneem Karodia of Mzansi Meats hopes to utilize existing food ingredients, like soy derivatives, to grow meat cells, which would significantly reduce the carbon footprint. However, some experts are skeptical that this approach would lead to lower emissions.

Another key factor influencing the climate impact of lab-grown meat is the energy required for its production and the source of that energy. As of last year, nearly two-thirds of global electricity came from fossil fuels, which release carbon dioxide. Although the transition to renewable energy sources is underway, the energy efficiency of large-scale cultured meat production remains uncertain. If it turns out to be highly inefficient, it could potentially outweigh the climate benefits of conventional agriculture and strain the transition to renewable energy.

Advocates of the industry argue that lab-grown meat requires less land compared to traditional agriculture, potentially allowing for reforestation or the restoration of carbon sinks. However, there are doubts about whether the freed-up land would actually be used for such purposes or if it would be repurposed for other non-environmental activities like golf courses.

Ultimately, the positive climate impact of lab-grown meat lies not in the technology itself but in the reduction of meat consumption overall. Eating less meat results in lower emissions and reduced land use associated with conventional livestock farming.

It cannot be ignored that there are already meat alternatives with low carbon footprints, like lentil burgers and soy sausages. However, shifting dietary preferences is difficult, and the demand for meat continues to rise. It is plausible that cultured meats may encounter less resistance than plant-based alternatives.

Nonetheless, there are numerous obstacles that must be overcome for cultivated meat to become widely accessible. These hurdles range from gaining consumer acceptance and addressing sustainability concerns to resolving technical challenges associated with scaling up production and acquiring the necessary capital. Despite these challenges, Eat Just’s CEO, Tetrick, remains optimistic that simpler cultivated meat products such as ground beef, sausages, and chicken nuggets will become more widely available within the next five to ten years.