Factory farming is a practice that most people disagree with, whether or not they actually eat meat. In fact, a poll carried out by the Sentience Institute (and double checked by the Oklahoma Agriculture Department) found that around 50 percent of Americans want to ban slaughterhouses, despite the fact that the majority of the participants reported they eat meat and are aware that slaughter is part of the process.

The reality of housing thousands of animals in confined, filthy spaces and subjecting them to cruel treatment and ultimately death is a lot for most people to take in, but animal welfare isn’t the only problem that stems from factory farms. These facilities are also ground zero for countless public health hazards and unfathomable amounts of waste and pollution. 

So here we have a huge disconnect where the desire for a product seems to come at odds with disdain for the way it is produced. But what if consumers could get the same burgers, steaks, and nuggets they love without causing harm or creating a huge environmental mess? That’s where clean meat, or meat produced via cellular agriculture, comes in.

In a recent episode of the #EatForThePlanet podcast, Bruce Friedrich, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Good Food Institute (GFI), stopped by to share his expert insights into how the plant-based meat and clean meat industries are advancing. GFI works with scientists, policymakers, and companies to Support the development and proliferation of alternatives to meat and dairy, and by and large, he has found that leaders in the meat and dairy industry share the same dislike for the way these products are produced as consumers.

In this fascinating interview, Bruce gets into the perspectives he has gotten from Congresspeople across the aisle in Support of meat alternatives, discusses how subsidies can be used to benefit the growing plant-based and clean meat space, and how the USDA and FDA’s response to new products has signaled a clear way forward. He also divulges conversations he’s had with top meat industry conglomerates and shares their encouraging response to doing away with factory farming.

He also touches on the new players in the space and gives an estimate for how far away we are from having animal-free clean meat that is price comparable with products on the market today.

Bruce has been leading the fight against factory farming for years and has developed somewhat of a roadmap to a slaughter-free future through his work with GFI. To learn more about the steps that are being taken to innovate our food system away from factory farms and towards a more just, sustainable future, listen in.

You can listen to the full episode below or on the following platforms: iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play. 

If you like this episode, be sure to subscribe to the #EatForThePlanet with Nil Zacharias podcast for new episodes with food industry leaders, health, and sustainability experts, as well as entrepreneurs and creative minds who are redefining the future of food – and order your copy of the #EatForThePlanet book!

Image source: Kraipet Sritong/Shutterstock

Easy Ways to Help the Planet:

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