Cultivated meat was born in laboratories for several years. The first chicken pieces have now passed a security check by the Singapore Food Agency. That could, according to the server The Guardian mean a breakthrough in the meat industry.
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“I think this approval is one of the most important milestones in the food industry over the last few decades. It has opened the door and it is up to us and other companies to take this opportunity. I hope that in the next few years, this will lead to a world where most meat does not require the killing of a single animal or the felling of a single tree, “said Eat Just Josh Tetrick, CEO of Eat.
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It produced an approved alternative to animal meat. So far, “Chicken” will be served in only one restaurant in Singapore. The alternative will also be significantly more expensive than regular chicken meat, which will be the case at least until production starts in bulk.
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The meat is grown in a 1200 liter bioreactor and then combined with plant ingredients. “If we want to serve the whole of Singapore and eventually bring the meat to other parts of the world, we have to switch to bioreactors with a capacity of 10,000 liters or more than 50,000 liters,” said Tetrick. Other challenges from Eat Just now include increasing production and gaining regulatory approval in other countries.
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Its production does not require the slaughter of an animal, because the raw material comes from a cell bank. Stem cells taken from live animals are used for its production.
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According to Tetrick, meat “from a test tube” has the same nutritional value as animal meat. Consumer reactions will thus play an important role. “It is different? Certainly. Our hope lies in communication with consumers, when we find out if it is comparable to classic meat, “said Tetrick.
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Dozens of companies that develop not only chicken, but also beef and pork are embarking on similar experiments. Their goal is, in addition to profit, to reduce the impact of animal husbandry on the environment. Meat produced in laboratories is considered a more organic way of producing, because livestock makes a significant contribution to the production of greenhouse gases. Breeding, feed and subsequent processing of meat also means high consumption of water and soil.
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Producers of such meat also believe that this product lures human carnivores away from traditional animal foods. However, some diners look for a vegan diet because meat grown in bioreactors has a lower risk of contamination by bacteria, animal waste and overuse of antibiotics and hormones.
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Currently, about 130 million chickens and four million pigs are killed daily for meat. By weight, 60 percent of mammals on Earth are livestock, 36 percent are human, and only four percent are wild animals.
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A number of scientific studies have shown that people from developed and rich countries eat more meat than is healthy for them and the planet. Research also shows that reducing meat consumption is crucial to tackling the climate crisis.
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In the future, other companies engaged in the production of alternatives to classical meat could also prosper. Laboratory meat is produced, for example, by Memphis Meats, Mosa Meat, Aleph Farms or Supermeat, which recently launched public and free tastings of cultivated meat in Israel.
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Two of the world’s largest meat processors, Tyson and Cargill, who bought a stake in Memphis Meats, also prove that people believe in this business.
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