Great news for the environment, our health, and animals! Ingredient Communications Public Relations commissioned Surveygoo in January of 2018 to administer an online survey of 1,000 consumers in the UK and the U.S. about lab-grown meat, also known as “clean meat.” Consumers were told that cultured meat was meat grown from cells in a laboratory and not sourced from animals and then were asked if they would eat lab-grown meat.

Remarkably, 29 percent of consumers said they would eat cultured meat, 40 percent of Americans said they were happy to do so, and 60 percent of vegans said they were willing to give it a try. That means one in three people are willing to eat lab-grown meat!

“People enjoy eating meat, but often feel guilty about related issues such as animal welfare and the impact of farming on the environment. Cultured meat addresses those concerns, which is a compelling benefit,” said Richard Clarke, the Founder and Managing Director of Ingredient Communications.

Knowing the world’s population is set to reach 9.8 billion by 2050 and we simply won’t be able to sustain more people eating a diet high in animal products, clean meat can provide a viable alternative to factory farming.

There are already a handful of lab-grown meat technology companies working towards making animal-free meat, such as Hampton Creek, Memphis Meats, Mosa Meat, and SuperMeat. In fact, Mosa Meat recently announced that their “Burger 2.0” will debut in high-end restaurants by 2020. And in February of 2018, a powerhouse coalition of investors was formed to help bring more lab-grown meat and plant-based meat to China, which has the world’s LARGEST market for beef, pork, and poultry.

Research by Oxford and Amsterdam Universities noted that switching to lab-grown meat would allow a reduction of up to 98 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, 99 percent of land exploitation, and up to 96 percent in water usage. Considering how the future of our planet is in jeopardy, we are thrilled to know one out of three consumers are interested in lab-grown meat!

To learn more about the environmental impact of our food choices as well as trends and developments in the plant-based food space, check out our podcast #EatForThePlanet with Nil Zacharias.

 

Lead Image Source: Mosa Meat/Facebook