The case of theory vs. practice (expected vs. actual results).

Sure eating 'non-meat' meat sounds good (in theory), in many ways.

But based on what the Non-GMO Project has been reporting about this 'cultivated meat' thing, this is not a good sign (in practice).

In 2017, Memphis Meats submitted a patent involving the use of CRISPR to extend the ability of cells to replicate during cultivation. A 2018 patent assigned to Upside Foods details methods for increasing the efficiency of cell cultures through the development and use of engineered cells.  And although Upside Foods has been somewhat circumspect about stating whether their first USDA-approved offering is or is not the product of genetic engineering, on the Innovation page of the company’s website, it touts a 2018 patent to protect “a GE method for increasing cell density.” 

Another developer of cell-cultured meat (i.e., beef), SciFi Foods, which emerged from stealth mode in June of 2022 after rebranding from Artemys Foods, has been more transparent about its use of CRISPR in the development process. In July 2022, SciFi Foods announced that it was able to reduce its production costs 1,000-fold through the use of genetic engineering. The company is planning to open a pilot plant in the San Francisco Bay Area by the end of 2024. Its first product release is expected to be a plant-based cell-cultured meat hybrid burger.