Whether it is a nice cut of steak, bucket of fried chicken or juicy roast duck that you prefer, these classic dinner meats can now be replicated in a petri dish. 

According to Ipsos, nearly 90% of Americans incorporate meat in their diet. Meat is a large part of American culture and carbon footprint. That’s why scientists are creating a new way for Americans to sustainably consume it.

“​​We put a little allium glaze on it, which is just an onion-garlic reduction. Just give it a little color and some flavor on the outside,” said Nate Park, a chef at Good Meat. Good Meat is one of the two companies that have received FDA approval to launch their lab-grown meat products. At Good Meat, scientists and chefs collaborate to create alternative versions of meat. On the company website, the process of cultivating meat is explained.

The first step in the process is sourcing. Sourcing is done by painlessly extracting cells from living animals. The next step is selecting the cells likely to produce the most healthy and delicious meat. After selecting the cells, they are placed into a vessel and are left to indefinitely divide. In the vessel, the cells are nourished with nutrients that an animal would consume in the wild such as amino acids, fats, and vitamins. No GMOs or additional hormones are introduced to the cells.

No feathers or bones are produced in the process, only meat. After four to six weeks, the meat is ready to be cultivated. The meat is then molded through a 3D printer for aesthetics. Lastly, the product goes under the review of rigorous safety tests, and because of the process, the meat is completely free from E.coli and other foodborne diseases common in slaughtered meats.

According to consumers, the result tastes, as the saying goes, like chicken. The texture mimics actual chicken without the bones and pesky cartilage. 

So how does the quality of this meat compare to our free-range, farm-raised and organic options? First off, it is important to address that lab-grown meat is neither vegan or vegetarian as the cells derive from animals. Cultivated, or lab-grown meat requires much less land, uses less water, and produces less pollution.

“If we really want to stop climate change, we have to rethink how we feed the planet,” said CEO and co-founder of Good Meat, Josh Tetrick.

Cultivated meat is many times more sustainable compared to traditional meat products. Statistics show that the creation of lab-grown meat requires 45% less energy use, 99% land use, and emits 96% less greenhouse gasses. These stats can be appealing to environmental conservationists.

As of July 2023, lab-grown meat was approved by both the Food and Drug Administration and USDA. Lab-grown meat isn’t currently available in U.S. supermarkets and likely won’t be for years but these products can be enjoyed in select restaurants. Chef and humanitarian, José Andrés, owns China Chilcano, a Peruvian restaurant in Washington D.C. that is among the first to serve cultivated meats. “We need to innovate, to adapt our food to a planet in crisis. We need to create meals that feed the people at the same time as we sustain our communities and environment.” Said Chef Andrés.

Lab-grown meat is an invention in the works as the new industry struggles with mass production and approval from the general populace. But with society becoming more climate-conscious, cultivated meat could prove to be a primary option to some. One day in the future you will be in the supermarket walking down the meat aisle and you may see a packaged container of lab-grown beef right alongside ribeye steak.