Source: Lisa M. Keefe, MEATINGPLACE, 7/3/18


A new report from Friends of the Earth calls into question the environmental benefits attributed to meat analogs and lab-grown animal products, and emphasizes the need for more research.

“Second-generation, lab-created animal protein replacement products are not yet proven to be safe or sustainable by regulators or via transparent, independent third-party assessments. Rather, there are increasing concerns and questions that remain unanswered, and existing analyses show that these products may be problems masquerading as solutions,” the report said.

While plant-based meat analogs or lab-grown tissue may mean fewer animals slaughtered, the organization pointed out that their complicated make-up (more than a dozen ingredients); the need for additional crops, such as sugar cane, to provide necessary inputs; and the use of genetically modified ingredients in some cases are cause for concern.

“Companies making animal replacement products using genetic engineering and in vitro processes are making a range of claims to position their products as more sustainable than their animal product counterparts. If highly processed engineered foods, manufactured in laboratories with new, unassessed food ingredients andprocesses are going to replace even some of the existing animal protein from farm-based systems, then these novel food ingredients need to be carefully vetted,” the group said.

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