Will cultured meat be the new alternative?

LETHBRIDGE —  When we usually hear about meat alternatives, the Canada Food Guide is referring to legumes (beans, lentils), tofu, fish and eggs.
 
However, a new term is causing heartburn for beef, chicken and pork producers — it’s “clean meat” or cultured meat.

The label is being used by supporters of the emerging science of meat grown in labs without slaughtering cows and chickens. They use data from United Nations Scientists to support the idea of cultured meat by stating animal production is a major cause of global warming, land degradation and air and water pollution.

But many in the conventional meat industry don’t want “clean meat” to become the accepted name of the products, because it implies the meat they produce isn’t clean.

Meat products grown by replicating animal cells are not yet on supermarket shelves…and if it was, it would set you back $40 a gram or $10 for one hamburger patty.