Cultivated Meat Moves Closer to Mass Production

February 1, 2022

Mosa Meat Clears a Production Hurdle, Shares Discovery With Competitors

By: The Policy Campaign Team

After a year that brought little in terms of good news (COP26, global extreme weather events and growing food insecurity), a major breakthrough in cultivated meat research brings hope for a food and climate secure future.

On the 13th of January 2022, Mosa Meat announced that they have successfully created cultivated meat without fetal bovine serum (FBS). The peer-reviewed paper, published in Nature Food, debunks the popular myth that cultivated meat is not a viable option for addressing major societal and environmental issues.

Cultivated meat technology allows scientists to grow meat in a sterile food production facility - similar to brewing beer or culturing yogurt. The final product is biologically identical to traditionally-reared meat without the many environmental, health and ethical costs of current animal agriculture.

This announcement also combats a series of headlines from 2021 that argued how reliance on FBS (derived from cow fetuses) offsets the environmental benefits of cultivated meat, thus limiting its scalability. Fortunately, Mosa Meat's decision to publicly share the pathway to create cultivated meat without FBS has removed this limiting factor and the main argument against cultivated meat.

The cultivated meat industry has developed significantly in the last few years, seeing significant research investment from big players like JBL Meat and the USDA and products regulated for sale in Singapore. While Mosa Meat has torn down the barrier presented by FBS, other obstacles still remain. Significant public and private financing are needed to bring this technology's climate and social benefits to fruition - an area where Canada is falling behind agricultural innovators such as the US and the Netherlands.

There is an urgent need to address growing global concerns such as climate change, antibiotic resistance, pandemics and food insecurity. While movements like Veganuary support those willing and able to adhere to an ethical and climate-friendly plant-based diet, it is clear this is not a one-size-fits-all solution. We cannot stop the growing demand for and consumption of meat, but we can offer an ethical, sustainable and healthy solution: cultivated meat.

Climate change, antibiotic resistance, pandemics, environmental destruction, drought, soil degradation and mistreatment of humans and animals all present strong arguments for moving away from conventional meat production. We need governments to recognize the potential for cultivated meat to address all of these issues and support the development of this industry. Together, we can ignite an agricultural revolution by cultivating our meat, allowing us to relieve the exhausted earth and ensure global food security.

To Learn More About Cultivated Meat...

You can check out our video series explaining what cultivated meat is all about.

You can sign our cultivated meat petition.

Or if you want to do more to help us push for cultivated meat legislation, you can read our policy brief and sign up to be a policy advocate.

References:

https://mosameat.com/blog/cultivating-beef-without-fetal-bovine-serum

https://www.greenqueen.com.hk/mosa-meat-fetal-bovine-serum-cultivated-meat/

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2024 Canada Animal Welfare Scorecard: Alarming Findings on Animal Welfare and Corporate Commitments

By Jessica Bohrson at Mercy For Animals • November 7, 2024

The 2024 Canada Animal Welfare Scorecard evaluated animal welfare commitments and transparency across 40 leading Canadian food companies. Focusing on cage-free eggs, gestation-crate-free pork, and adherence to Better Chicken Commitment (BCC) standards, the report uncovers serious gaps in transparency, industry-wide “humanewashing,” and persistent animal welfare issues. Here’s a breakdown of the most troubling findings. 1. Lack of Transparency in Major Retailers and Foodservice Providers Walmart Canada, Calgary Co-op, and Federated Co-operatives have demonstrated minimal transparency, failing to publish updates or roadmaps on their animal welfare commitments. Walmart Canada is the only top-five retailer in Canada not reporting any progress on welfare practices, despite publishing incremental updates in the U.S. Meanwhile, Calgary Co-op still lacks any published policies or progress toward ending confinement for hens and pigs, despite its members’ vote to support humane conditions over a decade ago. 2. Misleading Industry Claims and "Humanewashing" Tactics A major issue facing Canadian consumers is the widespread “humanewashing” in the food industry, where companies use misleading labels and terminology to suggest higher animal welfare standards than actually practiced. Companies like Burnbrae Farms label their eggs as “Nestlaid,” implying cage-free conditions, which leads nearly half of surveyed consumers to mistakenly believe these eggs come from open barns. Industry groups, including Chicken Farmers of Canada , amplify this confusion by using terms like “family farms” to evoke images of small, humane operations, even when products are sourced from intensive confinement systems. Rather than improving actual welfare standards, these organizations invest heavily in shaping public opinion through corporate responsibility reports and marketing campaigns, leaving consumers misinformed about the true conditions behind their food. 3. The Crisis of "Frankenchickens" in Poultry Production The Canadian poultry industry’s use of ultrafast-growing birds, often termed “Frankenchickens,” remains a primary welfare issue. These birds are bred to grow four times faster than chickens in the 1950s, resulting in painful health problems and limiting their ability to move or access food and water. Although companies have pledged to stop using these breeds by 2026, few have shown significant action on this front. Major Canadian poultry producers continue to use these breeds, creating severe welfare implications. 4. Continued Use of Gestation Crates for Pigs Gestation crates remain the norm across Canadian pork production, confining mother pigs in cramped stalls that prevent them from turning around. Some progress is evident, with companies like Costco and Starbucks Canada reporting steps toward group housing. However, Walmart Canada and Federated Co-operatives have not published policies or progress. While the industry timeline for complete phase-out stretches to 2029, these companies have yet to implement meaningful welfare improvements, prolonging extreme confinement for Canada’s 1.2 million breeding sows. 5. Slow Progress in the Shift to Cage-Free Eggs Despite growing opposition to cage confinement from Canadian consumers, the Canadian egg industry continues to invest in “enriched” cage systems that offer only minor improvements over conventional battery cages. Companies like Metro and Sobeys committed to sourcing cage-free eggs but report slow progress across their supply chains, while Calgary Co-op has yet to report any steps forward. Globally, over 2,600 companies have committed to eliminating cages, but Canada falls behind due to its reliance on slightly modified cage systems. Moving Forward: Accountability and Clear Roadmaps Required Companies need transparent roadmaps, annual goals, and consistent reporting to keep pace with rising consumer and investor expectations. Brands such as A&W Canada, Aramark, and Panago Pizza have set strong examples, publishing BCC-compliant policies and reporting progress, proving tangible progress is achievable. However, for others, a significant gapremains between public promises and the welfare practices in their supply chains.