With Veganuary in full swing, many of us are contemplating our meat consumption. A record 706,965 took part in Veganuary last year, and the environmental consequences of what we eat is an increasingly hot topic.

While cultivated meat is nothing new, it’s been more of a slow-burn than other non-meat trends. It’s ten years since nutritional scientist Hanni Rützler sank her teeth into the first cultivated burger, and it’s come a long way since then. Not least in affordability: valued at a whopping £215,000, that first burger was certainly not for the family dinner table, but with years of research and development since then, we’re getting closer to cultivated meat becoming an everyday staple.   

What is cultivated meat though, and what is its appeal? The impetus behind its development is the desire to create a product with all the flavour and texture of conventional meat, but with a reduced impact on the environment. Are the benefits significant enough for consumers to make the switch? 

What is cultivated meat? 

Also known as clean, cultured or lab-grown meat, cultivated meat is meat that is grown in a laboratory. It is ‘real’ meat, but only requires a few animal cells to be grown from, with no need for the slaughter of animals. Since that first burger, there are now almost 100 companies worldwide producing cultivated animal protein in laboratories.In theory, any type of meat can be cultivated and producers are working on products based on many species. While cultivated burgers and steaks get most attention and research, pork, chicken, turkey and duck have all been cultivated too. The process isn’t restricted to meat – fish cells are being used to cultivate tuna, salmon and even lobster. Producers aim to create the exact flavour and texture of the meat they’re replicating, with the same, or even optimised, nutritional profile. 

How is cultivated meat made? 

The process of producing cultivated meat takes only a few weeks and begins with taking stem cells from the relevant animal. The harvested cells are introduced into cultivators for them to grow, and delivered nutrients which mimic the biological processes within an animal. Structures called scaffolds are needed to allow cells to mature into muscle and fat. This is where much of the texture and flavour in conventional meat comes from, so is an important part of the cultivation process. Scaffolding can be made of many types of edible biomaterials, like plants, algae, or fungi. All that remains is to harvest and process the meat. Processing takes place in much the same way as conventional meat, including forming into shapes (burger patties, meatballs, nuggets), seasoning, and packaging ready for refrigerated or frozen transportation. 

Is cultivated meat vegan?

Since cultivated meat requires animal cells, it is not technically vegan. However, as the process removes the need for animal slaughter, some vegans say they are open to consuming it.

“The more momentum cultured meat gains, the less demand there will be for animal meat,” says Veggly founder Alex Felipelli. “Ultimately, we as vegans just want to save as many animals’ lives as possible and protect the planet. Cultured meat is one of the new innovations that will help us achieve this, so it’s worth supporting or encouraging it, even if we don’t want to eat it.” 

Why do we need meat substitutes?

Global meat consumption has more than doubled since the early 1960s, and 14.5% of greenhouse gas emissions are attributable to livestock farming (around the same as produced by the essential transport sector). This includes not only carbon dioxide, but also methane and nitrous oxide, which all play a significant role in global warming. 

Although farmers and retailers have argued that new technology and favouring local produce will reduce the emissions footprint of meat, statistics do not bear this out. Most emissions in livestock farming result from feed production (58%) and are released during animals’ digestive processes (31%), whereas processing and transport account for only 7% of greenhouse gas emissions.

As well as the environmental impact of conventional livestock agriculture, scientists have been warning for years that the rise in meat production is increasing the risk of future pandemics due to zoonotic diseases and antibiotic resistance. Three in four new and emerging infectious diseases come from animals, and animal agriculture is a huge part of the problem. Outbreaks of bird flu are typically associated with intensive poultry farming, and since pigs can be infected by avian, swine and human influenza, intensive pig farms are powerful ‘mixing pots’ for new, deadly viruses. 

Is cultivated meat a good substitute for conventional meat? 

Research suggests the environmental impacts of cultured meat would be significantly lower than those for conventional meat. According to a 2011 Oxford University study, cultivated meat could reduce emissions by 96%, while another by the University of Amsterdam found cultured meat was “reducing the energy needs of meat generation by up to 45%, requiring only 2% of the land that the global meat/livestock industry does.”Cellular agriculture would also cut down on waste. When farming animals, a large amount is discarded, such as bones, fur, and organs. With cultured meat, you grow exactly the product you want, so barely anything is thrown away. There is less risk of zoonotic diseases with cultivated meat, and since it can be made without antibiotics, it helps reduce the risk of antimicrobial resistance.  

Is the UK ready for cultivated meat? 

Here in the UK we’re not known for our culinary daring, but we are a nation of animal lovers. Psychology researcher Chris Bryant says: “People eat meat despite how it’s made, not because of it. Clean [cultivated] meat enables them to carry on eating it without killing animals.”

Last year, the UK government invested £12 million into a new hub for cellular agriculture called CARMA, to help us lead the world in delivering secure food supplies. In September, Europe’s largest contract pilot plant for cultivated meat and seafood opened in Bristol. And in August, Aleph Farms became the first company to seek approval with the Food Standards Agency to launch its cultivated beef steaks in the UK.  

So what do you think? Is the UK ready for cultivated meat and would you eat it? Let us know what you think!

Image used is cultivated meat spaghetti meatballs, made from animal cells at Ivy Farm Technologies, Oxford.