High Steaks: will cultured meat save the planet?

Takeaways:

• Cultured meat or cell-based meat is produced by isolating cells from a healthy animal, then growing them in a cultivator, which mimics natural conditions in a controlled environment. As the cells replicate, they can be arranged on a scaffold (matrix) which helps to form different muscle tissues. These different tissues or ‘cuts of meat’, can then be harvested, cooked and consumed.
• The products produced through cellular agriculture are biochemically identical to traditionally-produced meat, however instead of farming animals, cellular agriculture involves farming cells.
• The benefits of cultured meat include:
  • being more efficient and more sustainable than traditionally farmed meat
  • reducing the need for antibiotics and avoiding pathogens and zoonotic diseases associated with intensive farming practices
  • avoiding animal welfare concerns by removing animals from the process.
• Animal agriculture represents 20% of global GHG emissions, and we will not meet our climate targets unless we address this. Alternative proteins, including cultivated meat, need to be seen as a climate solution – they are one of the best tools we have to meet our net zero targets. Life cycle analysis has indicated that cultured meat production could contribute to a 92% reduction in GHG emissions, compared to conventional meat production.
• To make cellular agriculture a reality on the shelves, and accessible to all, we need to ensure we develop the right products on the right platforms to meet consumer expectations. Public-private partnerships will be key in this and we need to work holistically, using a systems-based approach.

www.Aleph-farms.com
gfieurope.org