Lab-Grown Meat: A Grotesque Misadventure or the Future of Food?
Lab-grown meat, once hailed as the future of ethical eating, now appears to be one of the most significant failures in the food industry.
According to Julian Mellentin, a seasoned food consultant, it’s a misadventure so monumental that business schools will soon teach it as a cautionary tale.
The technology, which involves extracting cells from animal fetuses and cultivating them in bioreactors, was supposed to revolutionize food production. Instead, the industry now faces a collapse.
Despite receiving billions in funding from high-profile backers like Bill Gates and Richard Branson, lab-grown meat has failed to gain traction with consumers.
The Economics Never Worked
From the start, the economics were problematic. Producing lab-grown meat requires pharmaceutical-level lab conditions, expensive nutrients, and skilled labor, driving production costs to unsustainable levels.
A study suggested that breaking even would require a wholesale price of around $63 per kilo—making it far too expensive to compete with conventional meat.
Companies like SCiFi Foods and Israel’s Aleph Farms have shut down operations or laid off significant portions of their workforce.
Even marketing efforts have stalled, as consumers express little interest in eating lab-grown meat. The product, described as “too weird” by Mellentin, has failed to win over the public.
Environmental Impact and Public Disgust
Lab-grown meat was once touted as an environmentally friendly solution to conventional farming.
However, recent studies indicate that lab-grown meat could produce between four and 25 times more CO2 emissions than traditional livestock. The energy required to operate bioreactors and produce nutrients far outweighs the benefits.
Additionally, lab-grown meat hasn’t solved the problem of public acceptance. Deep-seated cultural and psychological ties to food have made it difficult for many to accept a product that comes from a lab.
The Call for a Taxpayer Bailout
Despite the setbacks, some in the industry are calling for public investment to keep lab-grown meat afloat. Mosa Meat, a key player in the industry, has openly requested government funding to help the sector survive its “valley of death.”
However, the question remains whether taxpayers are willing to rescue an industry that has struggled to gain traction. While governments like the UK have praised lab-grown meat as “game-changing tech,” others are skeptical about whether it’s worth saving.
What’s Next?
The promise of lab-grown meat may be fading, but that doesn’t mean the search for humane meat alternatives is over.
Mellentin and others argue that the answer lies in more ethical farming practices, rather than pushing forward with an expensive and unpopular technology. For now, it seems that traditional meat—and the farmers who produce it—will continue to dominate the market.
Discover why lab-grown meat struggles to compete with traditional farming—visit our homepage to learn more about the future of meat.
