After Singapore, the United States this week became the second country to authorize the marketing of artificial chicken. Overview of the questions posed by laboratory-grown meat, sometimes presented as an alternative to conventional agriculture.
How is meat made in the lab ?
” Meat culture is based on techniques developed for cell culture and in particular for regenerative medicine “, explain Eric Muraillesenior researcher in biology and immunology at the Free University of Belgium.
After taking stem cells from the animal at the muscle level, these are cultured in what are called bioreactors – tanks filled with very rich nutrient liquids (minerals, vitamins, proteins, fats, sugars) – which stimulate their growth. The molecular cells thus obtained are mechanically assembled to form a piece of artificial meat which can be given the shape of a minced steak or a chicken fillet, for example.
Read alsoUS approves marketing of lab-grown chicken meat
What is the point of producing artificial meat ?
Put an end to animal suffering, reduce the ecological impact of meat production and reduce the risk of zoonosis. These are the main promises of the proponents of lab meat.
According to the IPCC, livestock would represent 14.5% of greenhouse gas emissions. According to the FAO, it represents 30% of soil used and 8% of water consumption. The world population will approach 9.5 billion in 2050 and the demand for animal protein will continue to grow. The idea of an alternative to breeding is therefore appealing.
Ethically as well. The market for meat products requires the slaughter of 65 billion animals each year. Cultured meat could therefore make it possible to put an end to animal exploitation. Or almost. To cultivate these cells, traditionally fetal calf serum is used. Recovering this precious liquid requires the slaughter of pregnant cows. Not really ideal in terms of respect for animal welfare, even if some companies claim to have managed to do without it completely.
Beyond the marketing speeches of manufacturers, emphasizes Jean-François Hocquette, research director at the National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment (Inrae), ” this authorization to market cultured meat in the United States does not change the fact that, in essence, there is little scientific literature on the subject. »
Is a lab-grown steak as nutritionally and tasty as a traditional steak? ?
Difficult to answer this question. For now, in the world, only Singapore already markets artificial chicken in one of its restaurants. ” To my knowledge, there is no scientific study on the nutritional qualities of this type of meat. “, explains Éric Muraille. ” Can we really talk about meat? “, points out Jean-François Hocquette. Meat is not only made up of muscle fibers, there is also fat, blood vessels, nerves…
As for the taste, it is precisely this complexity that gives meat its nutritional properties “, specifies the researcher on the INRAE website. To get closer to the taste of traditional meat, you have to add a lot of ingredients, such as fats, salt. ” Here we find the characteristics of ultra-processed foods, which are more associated with health problems. », emphasizes Éric Muraille.
Is artificial meat safer from a health point of view ?
This is one of the arguments of the proponents of laboratory meat: this manufacturing process would reduce infectious diseases transmitted by animals to human beings. “ It is true that from the moment the animal only acts as a cell donor, we could avoid zoonoses which still represent almost half of human infections. “, remember Eric Muraille.
On the other hand, underlines the immunologist, this raises other health problems. Animals have an immune system that protects them from infections, which is not the case with cell cultures. And that makes them very susceptible to bacteria. “ There are always dangers of having mass contamination in food that we would not detect at the beginning because we have never been confronted with it. So it’s true that this sector could solve current health problems, but it could also create new ones on which we have absolutely no experience. »he warns.
He also recalls: The idea with cultured meat is to produce in a few weeks what a normal animal muscle produces in a few years. For this, the cells must be subjected to “growth factors”, including hormones, which will greatly increase cell multiplication. But we know that these hormones have negative effects. » Their use is also prohibited in Europe.
Is it really better for the environment ?
In its press release, Uma Valeti, CEO of Upside Foods, one of two companies authorized to market lab-grown chicken in the United States, hailed “ a giant step towards a more sustainable future “, after the decision of the authorities.
But here too the answer is not so obvious. If the first comparative study carried out in 2011 evoked a reduction of greenhouse gases of 78% to 96% compared to the production of farmed meat, 7% to 45% of energy and 82% to 96% of less water, it did not take into account the impact of the construction of the infrastructures necessary for the culture in vitro. And more recent studies are much less in favor of cultured meat. Some even put forward a greater environmental impact in the long term given the energy cost of the infrastructures necessary for cell cultures and the large quantity of greenhouse gases emitted. This is what suggests a recent study from the University of California at Davies. However, this work has not been validated by other scientists.
Another problem, cultured meat being particularly sensitive to contamination, as Éric Muraille explains, ” a single bacterium can destroy an entire crop. To limit the risks, it is necessary to “clean rooms” as in the pharmaceutical industry, totally sterile. Sterility is most often guaranteed by the use of single-use plastic material. If you imagine that on large volumes, it represents massive pollution. Not to mention the problem of plastic contamination. » Steel tanks are also used, but making them sterile requires washing them at very high temperatures. A very energy-intensive process.
Finally, we must not forget, he also underlines, that “ livestock provides many by-products other than meat, it also participates in the production of fertilizers “.
Will we soon have cellular meat on our plates ?
Today, the current production of meat in the laboratory remains minimal. Singapore produces three kilos of meat a week, according to a BBC article. As a reminder, in 2021, 339 million tonnes of meat were consumed. This is currently a niche market, and it could remain so, say experts, even if the company Just Eat, which markets its meat in Singapore, claims to have reduced its costs by 90% since 2018. and intends to open a new production site. “ There are still technological challenges to produce at scale and at a reasonable price commented Jean-François Hocquette.
At European level, no marketing application has yet been submitted to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). Last February, in a Tribune published in The worldsome sixty scientists appealed to the precautionary principle in the face of the weakness of assessments in health, environmental or nutritional terms.
” As researchers, we are motivated by the question that is asked, namely how to feed humanity while protecting animals, the environment and with healthy products for the consumer. But we have other avenues of research. Collectively, summarizes Jean-François Hocquette, this track is not considered promising enough to invest heavily. »
” Meat in the laboratory will not solve the problem of hunger in the world, adds Eric Muraille. On the contrary, the cellular meat industry risks further reducing the number of agri-food players and creating market concentration which can cause problems in terms of access to food. »
Revisit livestock systems, but also change eating habits by consuming less meat in developed countries, reduce food waste. ” We already have there says the research director of Inrae, considerable levers for action that can be implemented today to respond to fundamental problems. »