Food of the Future? A Review on the Environmental Impacts and Sustainability of Cultured Meat
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24925/turjaf.v13i9.2832-2840.7670Keywords:
Cultivated meat, Sustainability, Renewable Energy, Economy, Life cycle analysisAbstract
The growing global population and unsustainable consumption of natural resources are expected to exacerbate future food security challenges. Cultivated meat, a novel technology produced by culturing animal cells in controlled environments without the need for conventional livestock farming, offers a sustainable alternative that also supports animal welfare. This study presents a literature review focused on the environmental impacts of cultivated meat production, specifically analyzing studies utilizing the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology. In addition, the review considers health and safety implications, animal welfare concerns, and the economic landscape of the cultivated meat sector. Findings suggest that cultivated meat can be a sustainable solution, particularly when renewable energy sources are employed. However, energy consumption remains the primary contributor to environmental impact, with greenhouse gas emissions largely associated with energy use and culture media. The implications of large-scale production are still uncertain. While cultivated meat may benefit animal welfare, its long-term health effects are not yet fully understood. Despite a decline in investment in 2023, new market entrants and decreasing production costs reflect ongoing industry momentum. Overall, cultivated meat demonstrates strong potential as a sustainable protein source, though further research and technological development are necessary to realize its full promise.
References
Anomaly, J., Browning, H., Fleischman, D., & Veit, W. (2024). Flesh Without Blood: The Public Health Benefits of Lab‐Grown Meat. Journal of Bioethical Inquiry, 21(1), 167–175. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11673-023-10254-7
Chriki, S., & Hocquette, J.-F. (2020). The Myth of Cultured Meat: A Review. Frontiers in Nutrition, 7–2020. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2020.00007
Dattani, S., Spooner, F., Ritchie, H., & Roser, M. (2024). Antibiotics and Antibiotic Resistance. Our World in Data. https://ourworldindata.org/antibiotics
Doğan, M. (2021). Gıda felsefesi. Nobel Akademik Yayıncılık.
Douglas, L. (2023, June 21). “A new era”: US regulator allows first sales of lab-grown meat. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/upside-foods-good-meat-receive-final-usda-approval-sell-cultivated-meat-2023-06-21/
FAO. (2008). The State of Food Insecurity in the World. Rome: FAO.
Good Food Institute. (2023). 2023 State of the Industry: Cultivated Meat and Seafood. https://gfi.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/2023-State-of-the-Industry-Report-Cultivated-meat-and-seafood.pdf
Green Queen. (2024, October). Cultivated meat: Economic & environmental benefits for the EU. Green Queen Media. https://www.greenqueen.com.hk/cultivated-lab-grown-meat-benefits-economy-jobs-eu-future-food/
Grossi, G., Goglio, P., Vitali, A., & Williams, A. G. (2019). Livestock and climate change: Impact of livestock on climate and mitigation strategies. Animal Frontiers, 9(1), 69–76. https://doi.org/10.1093/af/vfy034
Güneş Bayır, A., & Kıyak, B. (2022). İklim destekli beslenmede bitki bazlı diyetler ve sağlık üzerine etkileri. Akademik Et ve Süt Kurumu Dergisi, 4, 35–54.
Heinke, J., Lannerstad, M., Gerten, D., Havlík, P., Herrero, M., Notenbaert, A. M. O., Hoff, H., & Müller, C. (2020). Water use in global livestock production—Opportunities and constraints for increasing water productivity. Water Resources Research, 56(12), e2019WR026995. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019WR026995
International Organization for Standardization. (2006a). ISO 14040:2006 – Environmental management—Life cycle assessment—Principles and framework. https://www.iso.org/obp/ui/en/#iso:std:iso:14040:ed-2:v1:en
International Organization for Standardization. (2006b). ISO 14044:2006 – Environmental management—Life cycle assessment—Requirements and guidelines. https://www.iso.org/obp/ui/en/#iso:std:iso:14044:ed-1:v1:en
Ismail, I., Hwang, Y. H., & Joo, S. T. (2020). Meat analog as future food: a review. Journal of animal science and technology, 62(2), 111–120. https://doi.org/10.5187/jast.2020.62.2.111
Kim, S., Beier, A., Schreyer, H. B., & Bakshi, B. R. (2022). Environmental life cycle assessment of a novel cultivated meat burger patty in the United States. Sustainability, 14(23), 16133. https://doi.org/10.3390/su142316133
Kirsch, M., Morales-Dalmau, J., & Lavrentieva, A. (2023). Cultivated meat manufacturing: Technology, trends, and challenges. Engineering in Life Sciences, 23, e2300227. https://doi.org/10.1002/elsc.20230022
Lynch, J., & Pierrehumbert, R. (2019). Climate Impacts of Cultured Meat and Beef Cattle. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, 3–2019. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2019.00005
Mattick, C. S., Landis, A. E., Allenby, B. R., & Genovese, N. J. (2015). Anticipatory life cycle analysis of in vitro biomass cultivation for cultured meat production in the United States. Environmental Science & Technology, 49(19), 11941–11949. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5b01614
Nawaz, A. H., Hussain, A., Fujian, W., Zhang, W. L., Zheng, J. H., Zheng Hai, J., & Zhang, L. (2022). Future of Cultured Meat Production: Hopes and Hurdles. Future of Food: Journal on Food, Agriculture & Society. https://doi.org/10.17170/kobra-202204136014
OECD & FAO. (2024). OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2024–2033. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/4c5d2cfb-en
Parlasca, M. C., & Qaim, M. (2022). Meat Consumption and Sustainability. Annual Review of Resource Economics, 14, 17–41. doi:10.1146/annurev-resource-111820-032340
Poore, J., & Nemecek, T. (2018). Reducing food’s environmental impacts through producers and consumers. Science, 360(6392), 987–992. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aaq0216
PRISMA. (2020). PRISMA 2020 flow diagram. http://www.prisma-statement.org/PRISMA-2020-Flow-Diagram
Reis, G. G., de Freitas Martins da Silva, B., Hartmann, A. L., & Venus, T. E. (2025). Promises and uncertainties in the cultivated proteins market: Perspectives from Germany and Brazil. Food Policy, 131, 102820. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodpol.2025.102820
Risner, D., Negulescu, P., Kim, Y., Nguyen, C., Siegel, J. B., & Spang, E. S. (2025). Environmental impacts of cultured meat: A cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment. ACS Food Science & Technology, 5(1), 61–74. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.4c00281
Ritchie, H., & Roser, M. (2018). Water use and stress. Our World in Data. https://ourworldindata.org/water-use-stress
Ritchie, H. (2019). Food production is responsible for one-quarter of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Our World in Data. https://ourworldindata.org/food-ghg-emissions#article-citation
Ritchie, H., & Roser, M. (2019). Half of the world’s habitable land is used for agriculture. Our World in Data.
Ritchie, H., Rosado, P., & Roser, M. (2022). Environmental impacts of food production. Our World in Data. https://ourworldindata.org/environmental-impacts-of-food#article-citation
Roser, M., Ritchie, H., & Spooner, F. (2021). Burden of Disease. Our World in Data. https://ourworldindata.org/burden-of-disease
Shapiro, P. (2018). Clean meat: How growing meat without animals will revolutionize dinner and the world. Science, 359(6372), 399. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aas8716
Sinha, R., Cross, A. J., Graubard, B. I., Leitzmann, M. F., & Schatzkin, A. (2009). Meat intake and mortality: a prospective study of over half a million people. Archives of internal medicine, 169(6), 562–571. https://doi.org/10.1001/archinternmed.2009.6
Sinke, P., Swartz, E., Sanctorum, H., van der Giesen, C., & Odegard, I. (2023). Ex-ante life cycle assessment of commercial-scale cultivated meat production in 2030. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 28(3), 234–254. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-022-02128-8
Smetana, S., Mathys, A., Knoch, A., & Heinz, V. (2015). Meat alternatives: Life cycle assessment of most known meat substitutes. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 20(9), 1254–1267. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-015-0931-6
Statista. (2023). Cultivated meat. https://www.statista.com/study/135365/cultivated-meat/
Stephens, N., Di Silvio, L., Dunsford, I., Ellis, M., Glencross, A., & Sexton, A. (2018). Bringing cultured meat to market: Technical, socio-political, and regulatory challenges in cellular agriculture. Trends in Food Science & Technology, 78, 155–166. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tifs.2018.04.010
Sürek, E. and Uzun, P. Geleceğin Alternatif Protein Kaynağı: Yapay Et, Akademik Gıda 18(2) (2020) 209-216, DOI: 10.24323/akademik-gida.75884.
Swartz, E. (2021). Anticipatory life cycle assessment and techno-economic assessment of commercial cultivated meat production. The Good Food Institute.
Tuomisto, H. L., & Teixeira de Mattos, M. J. (2011). Environmental impacts of cultured meat production. Environmental Science & Technology, 45(14), 6117–6123. https://doi.org/10.1021/es200130u
Tuomisto, H. L., Allan, S. J., & Ellis, M. J. (2022). Prospective life cycle assessment of a bioprocess design for cultured meat production in hollow fiber bioreactors. Science of the Total Environment, 851, 158051. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.158051
Tuomisto, H. L., & Ryynänen, T. (2024). Environmental impacts of cultivated meat. In C. R. Soccol, C. F. M. Molento, G. G. Reis, & S. G. Karp (Eds.), Cultivated Meat (pp. 277–292). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-55968-6_14
World Bank Open Data. (2024). World Bank Open Data. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/ER.H2O.INTR.PC
Yahoo Finance. (2024, November 10). SuperMeats’ forward-facing LCA highlights. Yahoo Finance. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/supermeats-forward-facing-lca-highlights-160000797.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAM83L1GybPU0F8et3dz28OqlIgczROKBTnkNzCcotp1BDnqXWkiea51CwuqYDydKnBV_iLLaFRoP-S0AGFH-tlLCwcWj8jWKWb8bhmKNMWPlhs44VzTvod6r5jeBkLw1gwSD75vbfkJFjq4acxrDerMTiwsFz6Lh5Hxa0JGptWlE
Zheng, Y., Li, Y., Satija, A., Pan, A., Sotos-Prieto, M., Rimm, E., … Hu, F. B. (2019). Association of changes in red meat consumption with total and cause specific mortality among US women and men: two prospective cohort studies. BMJ, 365. doi:10.1136/bmj. l2110
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
