Study finds cultured meat can open opportunities for farmers

Farmers across the UK may be able to take advantage of opportunities created by the introduction of cultured meat, according to new research.

The study, carried out by a team from the Royal Agricultural University, found using products from traditional farming could bring cultured meat to the marketplace more quickly, and make the product more environmentally friendly, as well as cheaper to produce and buy.

See also: Will cultured meat kill off the livestock industry?

At the moment, cultured meat is not expected to become a truly viable commercial product for another 10-15 years.

However, using the leftovers from making rapeseed oil, blood from traditional meat production or horn and hoof meal, another abattoir by-product, have the potential to speed up the process.

All three by-products are rich in amino acids, which are the costliest and least sustainable ingredients used to grow cultured meat.

The researchers said linking cultured meat production to agriculture could address concerns over the threat the new technology poses to traditional farming.

Prof Tom MacMillan, the Elizabeth Creak chairman in rural policy and strategy at the RAU, who led the study, said: “The National Food Strategy called for a 30% cut in meat consumption over 10 years, and argued that developing better and cheaper alternative proteins could help.

“While the jury is out on whether cultured meat will fit the bill, we’ve found it needn’t spell disaster for farmers.

“Some places round the world have banned cultured meat in the name of protecting farming. But instead of seeing this as ‘all or nothing’, we explored where there could be win-wins.

“Building bridges with farmers is certainly in the cultured meat companies’ interests, as some are starting to see.

“More surprisingly, we found keeping the door open may serve farmers better too.”

The RAU team partnered with nine UK farms to find out what cultured meat might mean for their individual businesses.

Compared with challenges such as changing weather patterns and global commodity markets, the threat of competition from cultured meat felt like a “slow burn” to them.

Their main concerns were about wider social issues, such as big companies controlling the food system or the knock-on effects for rural communities, more than about the direct impact on their businesses.