Producing Cultivated Meat: Examining the Process and Pros/Cons

Gerd Dani 0

Recently, there has been much discussion about artificially-produced meat, also termed "cultivated" or "cell-based" meat. This write-up aims to explain what this type of meat is and how it is created, as well as the obstructions that must be surpassed if it is to become available in European grocery stores.






What is the process behind manufacturing lab-grown meat and what is it?



Meat created in a laboratory setting, rather than through the raising and slaughter of livestock, is known as lab-grown meat.1 This is distinct from the imitation meat products made from plant-based proteins.




Four distinct steps make up the production process:1


From a living animal, a specimen of stem cells is obtained. These cells have the capability to develop into distinct types of cells such as blood, liver, and muscle cells.


The stem cells are then placed in bioreactors, which are large tanks that contain culture media that simulate the animal's body environment and provide the necessary nutrients for the cells to multiply.


The culture media is altered in order for the stem cells to differentiate into the three major components of meat: muscle, fat, and connective tissue.


The cells are then segregated and organized to create the desired type of meat. This process is known as scaffolding. The scaffold is an edible material that supports the formation of meat cells into a particular shape, such as a steak or mincemeat. Moreover, the scaffold not only holds the cells together, but also conveys nutrients and helps with further differentiation. Typically, complex structures such as steaks are more difficult to reproduce than burgers.



This is an illustration of the process of creating lab-grown meat. It involves taking a small sample of cells from an animal and then culturing them in a nutrient-rich environment to allow the cells to grow and multiply. This process is then used to form the meat product.



What was the origin of lab-cultivated meat?





Mark Post, of Maastricht University, headed a group of individuals who made public a cultivated beef patty in August 2013.




Presently, approximately 60 entrepreneurial companies endeavor to bring cultivated meat to market, including not just beef, but also chicken, duck, seafood, foie gras, kangaroo, and other varieties.


What are some advantages and disadvantages of cultured meat?


The potential for improved animal welfare is one of the benefits of producing lab-grown meat. This method of production does not require the raising and slaughter of a large number of animals. However, the current process still depends on stem cells taken from living animals, and the culture medium used mostly contains fetal bovine serum, which is acquired from the blood of unborn calves in slaughterhouses, so it is not yet completely free from animal slaughter.


Advocates of laboratory-based meat often point to improved food safety as an advantage. This is due to the controlled lab environment, where the risk of contamination from bacteria such as E.coli or Campylobacter, usually stemming from the intestinal tracts of livestock, can be eliminated. Still, as with any industrial food production, there is still the potential for both microbiological and chemical contamination at various stages. Therefore, rigorous safety assessments will need to be conducted prior to the sale of lab-grown meat in Europe.


Given the projected global population growth to 9 billion by 2050, a more sustainable production of protein is essential. Although lab-grown meat production requires fewer resources such as water, land, and fertilizers than traditional animal husbandry, the environmental sustainability of mass-scale production is still uncertain. Further examination of the issue is needed, as the complexities of the matter are far-reaching; for example, the impact on global emissions, energy consumption, and waste production.


The potential for reducing methane emissions that contribute to climate change is possible with a reduction in cattle farming, however, modelling studies have suggested that lab-based meat production could produce significant levels of CO2 emissions in the long run.7


The energy needed to cultivate the meat has the potential to be problematic if the production process is powered by fossil fuels. The use of renewable energy sources will be essential for addressing any sustainability issues.7

Using a different structure, the same idea can be conveyed: Rather than having to go through the same process each time, it would be much more efficient to utilize automation to streamline the procedure. Automation is a great way to expedite the same process, allowing it to be completed more quickly.

It is important to take measures to ensure no plagiarism is present in any written work. This can be achieved by altering the structure of the text without altering the context or changing the semantic meaning. By doing this, the original formatting can be preserved.



Could vegetarians or vegans consider consuming lab-grown meat as an option?


Questions arise regarding the production of lab-grown meat, which is a food created using an age-old technique in a novel way.


At first, vegans and vegetarians would have been against lab-grown meat because of its usage of foetal bovine serum (FBS) as its growth medium. However, after 2022, numerous companies have developed a growth medium that does not come from animals, which was a breakthrough for the industry. Even with the production of the lab-grown meat still being considered meat, those who oppose eating it for ethical reasons may make an exception for it when it is made in this way.




Can lab-created meat be considered halal or kosher?



It is yet to be determined if lab-grown meat will be considered kosher or halal according to Jewish and Muslim religious authorities. Some may think this to be plausible, yet others disagree as the process of slaughtering an animal to make it kosher or halal may not be applicable to the production of lab-grown meat. It is uncertain whether or not such products will be accepted as kosher or halal.



Has the European Union given the thumbs up to laboratory-cultivated meat?



In order for cultivated meat to be available for sale to the public, it must first be approved by the national food safety authorities. Singapore is the only country to have done so thus far, while the US is also making progress in the same direction. Singapore has implemented strict regulations to evaluate the safety of lab-grown meat, which is classified as a novel food.11


Before any novel food is allowed to be sold in Europe, the European Commission must give it the green light. At the moment, no one has requested for this procedure to take place, although it is anticipated to happen in 2023. Following this, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) will conduct a review to check if the food is safe for human consumption. This entire process can take a few years to complete.


It is still too early to determine if lab-created meat will be classed as 'meat' or not. The European Union has an established legal definition of meat, made when animals were the only source of it, as "skeletal muscle from particular species of animals". But, since there is no animal or skeleton in the case of cultured meat, it is uncertain if this current definition would be enough to classify lab-grown meat. Currently, the labelling of lab-grown meat is being reviewed in the United States, with a public consultation taking place.



Could laboratory-cultivated meat substitute for traditional meat?


For lab-grown meat to become widely accepted as a substitute for traditional meat, consumer acceptance is vital. Recent research reveals that people are still quite hesitant in regards to cultured meat, yet it can be boosted by the way the product is marketed. At present, people seem to favor plant-based options when opting for alternative proteins. Most of the consumer research on lab-grown meat is based on hypothetical scenarios and only few consumers have had the chance to try it so far. There is limited information on the sensory characteristics, so not much is known about how the taste and texture compare to typical meat.




It is unclear if the nutritional benefits of lab-grown meat will be the same as traditional meat. This is due to the elaborate and costly production processes, which are largely owned by the companies who have invested in the technology. Since there is a lack of independent samples, the data available is mainly speculative or provided by the start-ups. 13




The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has indicated an increased dedication to cell-culture derived foods, an indication of a potential move to having these items available in European supermarkets. However, there are still a number of queries to be answered about lab-grown meat.


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