You have all probably heard of, if not participated in the heated debate surrounding the consumption of animals as food. In summary, one side states that it's wrong killing and abusing animals for the purpose of human nutrition, and the other side claims that, well - meat is so tasty.
In the future, this debate will become obsolete,as killing animals for food will become illegal and we can all eat lab-grown meat which will be cheaper, healthier and even tastier than the meat we eat today.
The history of meat
Humans have hunted and killed animals for meat since prehistoric times. Several studies have shown that meat eating played a crucial historical part in the evolutionary success of mankind by accelerating the development of our brain and allowing women to have more children.
While in the beginning men hunted animals for food pretty much the same way as other predators do, the agricultural revolution created a huge change. About 12,500 ago, men started to domesticate animals and plants, which led to an exponential rise in the size of the human population and subsequently – a rise in the number of animals needed to supply food to this growing population.
Then came the industrial revolution which made everything much more efficient and accelerated. Today there are approximately 1 billion sheep, 1 billion pigs, 1 billion goats, 1.5 billion cows and 23 billion chickens – all designated to be eaten. And the numbers keep growing rapidly.
The problem with meat consumption
The obvious argument against eating meat is of course the humanitarian one: meat production involves the killing of animals. Every year, more than 100 billion farm animals are slaughtered in order to produce the meat that we eat.
Moreover, in order to improve efficiency and reduce costs, farm animals are usually kept under horrible conditions. Most never get to see the sunlight, touch the ground or even breathe any fresh air.
But aside from the humanitarian aspect, meat consumption has another less-spoken problem. in order to create one kilogram of steak, a cow needs to eat up to 25 kilograms of grain and to drink 15,000 litters of water. About 26% of earth's land is currently used for livestock grazing and about 27% of all global freshwater issued for their drinking.
If we take into account the constant worldwide meat consumption growth, something will have to change - or else we'll find ourselves facing severe land and water shortages.
Vegetarianism
Surprisingly, even though more and more people are exposed to ethical and practical problems of meat consumption, vegetarianism just isn't catching on. A study from 2010 estimated that there are about 1.5 billion vegetarians worldwide, but the majority of them are not vegetarian by choice - they simply can't afford to buy meat. Only about 75 million people actually choose to be vegetarian.
Moreover, the study found that while meat consumption has increased by 250% between 1960 and 2002, world population has doubled in that time, so average meat consumption per head has grown by three-quarters. So how is it possible? Are people really so apathetic?
The fact is that meat plays an important cultural role in our life. For many people, meat is associated with rich festive family meals. Taking away the main course is simply too hard.
If this is not enough, meat is still much more affordable protein source compare to other alternatives. So becoming a vegetarian not only means you have to give up your favorite food – it will also cost you more.
Above all, in some cases meat is simply a medical necessity. Take for example the Dali Lama, the most famous living Buddhist monk, who was compelled to eat meat because of his Hepatitis.
So, it seems like there is a long way before mankind will be ready to fully quit meat eating. But maybe there is simply a different way.
Churchill's prediction
The idea of growing meat in a lab was suggested by no other than Winston Churchill. In an article he published in 1931 he predicted the world “Fifty Years Hence":
"With a greater knowledge of what are called hormones, i.e. the chemical messengers in our blood, it will be possible to control growth. We shall escape the absurdity of growing a whole chicken in order to eat the breast or wing, by growing these parts separately under a suitable medium.
Well, it took a bit longer than 50 years, but in 2013 the world's first lab-grown burger was eaten in London. The meat was 100% artificial, and according to the food experts that tried it, it tasted pretty much the same as regular burger.
The next big culinary thing
Lab-grown meat, also called "cultured meat", "clean meat", "synthetic meat" or "in vitro meat", is the next big culinary thing. It is produced using many of the same tissue engineering techniques traditionally used in regenerative medicine: taking animal cells, turning them into strips of muscles and then combining them to make a patty.
The financial potential of this market is enormous. Meat and poultry sales in the U.S. alone are expected to reach over $100 billion by 2021, and the global market opportunity exceeds $1 trillion!
Where there is money, there are entrepreneurs. Recently several startups have entered this old-new market including Mosa Meat, Memphis Meats, SuperMeat, Just Inc, and more. All of them are working diligently on creating artificial pork, beef and chicken. Particularly bold is Aleph Farm that is aiming to create a whole lab-grown steak rather than a just patty.
Many investors are expressing interest in this emerging field, including famous names like Bill Gates and Richard Branson, but even more significant is are the involvement of Tyson Foods and Cargill - the top two meat producers in the world. These two companies are taking a long-term view, investing millions of dollars into the technology space, and they'll be key to commercializing clean meat for the masses.
Many advantages
In 2013, producing the first lab-grown burger cost $325,000. By 2015, the cost had dropped to around $11. Today, the leading companies in the field are aiming to reach a price of less than $1. These low production costs will naturally be translated into lower prices for consumers.
When it comes to health, the lab-grown meat will be much better than the regular meat due to reducing exposure to dangerous chemicals like pesticides and fungicides, severe injuries, and wildlife. Moreover researchers have suggested that omega-3 fatty acids could be added to cultured meat as a health bonus.
A research from 2012 predicted that cultured meat will produce 80-95% lower greenhouse gas emissions, 99% lower land use and 80-90% lower water use compared to conventionally produced meat.
And, of course – we won't have to raise animal in terrible conditions and slaughter them in order to enjoy one of our favorite foods.
The day we'll stop killing animals
While today it's okay to raise a cow or a pig in a cage and slaughter them when you feel it's a good time for it, if you will do the same with a dog or a cat you will probably be sent to jail for animal cruelty. This is the hypocrisy of morality at its best.
It's easy to assume that as soon as there are other alternatives for meat production, killing animals for their meat will become illegal in most places – the same way that hunting which used to be the "normal" way for accumulating meat in the past is illegal today in most places.
Future generations will probably look at us as cruel barbarian people for our meat consumption habits. In a world where meat can be produced without harming any animals, it will be hard to explain why we had to kill 100 billion animals every year.
In conclusion
The next time you happen to be present in the eternal discussion between animal rights activist and carnivores, remember that eventually both sides will win: we won't stop eating meat, but no animal will be harmed. If only all arguments could end this way…