People concerned about the ethics of eating meat, but still eager to participate in the typical Thanksgiving feast, might not have to choke down tofurkey for too much longer.
That’s thanks to the efforts of nascent “cultivated meat” companies plugging away at the seemingly impossible task of creating real meat without the associated death and environmental damage. Seemingly more impossible still, regulators are starting to smile on the new industry’s mission.
This past week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (boo, hiss) completed its first-ever premarket consultation of cultivated chicken produced by Upside Foods. The agency declared that the Berkeley, California, company’s process for producing lab-grown chicken from harvested live chicken cells resulted in meat that was safe for human consumption.
Pending approval from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the company will be able being able to bring its cultivated chicken to market.
[For myself … hard pass. But I know a few people who will be thrilled — and that’s what choice is all about. Just make sure the apple pie is hot. — Ed]
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