Who is buying lab-grown meat?
Government approval means nothing without a market
The “meat tech” world was all abuzz this week with the news that the two leading (as in most full of BS) companies were each granted approval the U.S. Department of Agriculture to sell their cell-cultured chicken.
While this may seem like a Big Deal, is it really? Not when you consider the numerous barriers still facing these companies, the most important one being, who is buying it?
So far, both companies are only planning to sell to high-end restaurants, a sure sign that the price is still far too high for regular consumers.
As I wrote previously, there are insurmountable barriers for the product at retail.
I have yet to see any serious, independent consumer surveys to demonstrate there is any sizable demand for this product. Let’s go through each potential market:
Meat eaters: Why would they bother? regular meat is cheap, tasty, and available everywhere. Zero inventive for meat eaters to switch.
Vegans / vegetarians: Many in this very small group are turned off by the idea of eating real animal cells, and they are clearly not the target audience.
“Flexitarians”: An ill-defined group that has already demonstrated they are not as keen on plant-based meats as was originally hoped. So same as meat-eaters, they have access to tasty, cheap real meat, and plant-based foods, so why bother?
Meat eaters who care: This seems like the most promising group; those who eat meat but don’t like how it’s produced. But they already have alternatives in the form of pasture raised, grass-fed, etc. And since they can afford to spend more on higher welfare meat, why would they pay a premium for cell-based meat?
Moreover, consumers are likely to remain confused about what it even is. The label that USDA approved is for “cell-cultivated chicken”. What does that mean? How can an average consumer possibly know? I have tried asking Upside Foods for any consumer surveys but my requests go ignored.
I continue to maintain that lab-grown/ cell-based meat will be the next tech sector scandal. Let’s not forget that Theranos got government approval as well.
Don’t believe the hype.