[awakened53]

Study: Carbon Footprint Of Lab-Grown Beef “Orders Of Magnitude” Worse Than Ranching


A new study from the University of California, Davis, has found that [b]lab-grown, or “cultivated” meat’s environmental impact is likely to be “orders of magnitude” higher than retail beef[/b] based on current and near-term production methods.

The preprint study, which has yet to undergo peer review, concludes that [b]the energy needed and greenhouse gasses emitted[/b] during all stages of production of lab-grown meat is far greater than traditionally raised beef.

Researchers conducted a life-cycle assessment of the energy needed and greenhouse gases emitted in all stages of production and compared that with beef. One of the current challenges with lab-grown meat is the use of highly refined or purified growth media, the ingredients needed to help animal cells multiply. Currently, this method is similar to the biotechnology used to make pharmaceuticals. T[b]his sets up a critical question for cultured meat production: Is it a pharmaceutical product or a food product?[/b] –UC Davis

“If companies are having to purify growth media to pharmaceutical levels, it uses more resources, which then increases global warming potential,” according to lead author and doctoral graduate Derrick Risner, of the US Davis Department of Food Science and Technology. “If this product continues to be produced using the “pharma” approach, it’s going to be worse for the environment and more expensive than conventional beef production.”

The scientists considered the ‘global warming potential’ to be the carbon dioxide equivalents emitted for each kilogram of meat produced – and found that [b]the global warming potential of lab-based meat using these purified media is up to 25 times greater than the average for retail beef[/b].

More from UC Davis on the eventual goals of lab-grown (cultured) meat;

One of the goals of the industry is to eventually create lab-grown meat using primarily food-grade ingredients or cultures [b]without the use of expensive and energy-intensive pharmaceutical grade ingredients and processes.[/b]

Under that scenario, researchers found cultured meat is much more environmentally competitive, but with a wide range. [b]Cultured meat’s global warming potential could be between 80% lower to 26% above that of conventional beef production, they calculate[/b]. While these results are more promising, the leap from “pharma to food” still represents a significant technical challenge for system scale-up.

Read More: Study: Carbon Footprint Of Lab-Grown Beef “Orders Of Magnitude” Worse Than Ranching