By 2025, cultured meat (also known as clean meat or cellular meat) has ceased to be a futuristic experiment and has become a commercial reality. With regulatory approval in 12 countries and more than 150 startups working in the sector, this innovative food promises to reduce the environmental impact of traditional livestock farming. But will it truly deliver on its promises, or is it just another technological greenwashing?
How is Lab-Grown Meat Made?
The process, perfected in recent years, consists of four key steps:
- Painless biopsy: Stem cells are extracted from the muscle of a living animal (without killing it).
- Cell culture: The cells multiply in bioreactors with a growth medium based on plant proteins.
- Structuring: 3D algae scaffolds give muscle texture.
- Maturation: Growth factors and electrical stimulation develop the fibers.
Key Breakthrough 2025: MeaTech has successfully created steaks with fat marbling identical to conventional beef.
The Case for It: The Potential Savior
90% Lower Environmental Impact:
- Reduces land use by 95%
- Reduces methane emissions by 87% (FAO 2024 data)
Ethical Benefits:
- Zero animal slaughter
- Eliminates the preventive use of antibiotics
Feed Efficiency:
- Production in 3 weeks vs. 2 years to raise a bovine animal
New Products: Meat-plant hybrids with a better nutritional profile.
Criticisms and Outstanding Challenges
Scalability Issues:
- Only 0.01% of global meat is cultured (despite multi-million dollar investments).
- Current bioreactors produce only 50 kg/day (vs. 1,500 kg on factory farms).
Energy Dependence:
- If electricity isn’t 100% renewable, the carbon footprint could equal that of livestock farming.
Cultural Aversion:
- Surveys show that 62% of consumers are still wary (especially in meat-eating countries like Argentina and the US).
Costs:
- A cultured steak costs $11 (vs. $3.50 for a conventional one), although it has dropped from the $300,000 price of the first hamburger in 2013.
Current Situation in 2025
- Singapore: World leader with 30 restaurants serving cultured meat.
- US: USDA approved the sale of cultured chicken from Upside Foods.
- EU: Under evaluation, with strong opposition from livestock lobbies.
- Israel: State subsidies for R&D; they hope to be a key exporter.
What Do the Experts Say?
- “Could cover 30% of the market by 2035” (Bruce Friedrich, GFI).
- “Without strict regulation, it will only benefit multinationals” (Vandana Shiva, activist).
Alternatives in the Running
- Plant proteins (Beyond Meat, Impossible Foods).
- Precision fermentation (such as Motif FoodWorks’ hemoprotein).
What You Can Do
- Test products in pioneering cities (Singapore, Tel Aviv).
- Demand transparency: Specify cell source and actual environmental footprint.
- Compare impacts: Use calculators like the Meat Footprint Calculator.
“It’s not a perfect solution, but it’s the least bad solution for feeding 10 billion people.” — Mark Post, creator of the first cultured hamburger.