Florida legislators have been quietly working to ban and criminalize the production and sale of cell-cultivated meat across the state, via the introduction of two bills.
The “fake meat” they are referring to is lab grown from the living cells of animals not vegetable amalgamations made to imitate meat.
Depending on an individual’s reasons for following a vegan or vegetarian diet, lab-grown meat may very well be okay.
If their reasons are nutrition based, sure, they should avoid lab-grown meat.
If their reasons are based in the ethics of raising animals for slaughter, factory farming, or the carbon footprint and/or food and water waste involved in raising an entire animal just for parts of it to be food, then lab-grown meat might be fine in their mind.
From the little I’ve seen of discussions, it depends on the implementation. I haven’t looked at the details yet, but apparently there are some groups who require at least an initial animal biopsy, and I think someone said something about some growth mediums requiring animal exploitation as well.
Then there’s the animal testing side of things.
Since both health and animal rights matter to me, I have no interest in consuming the stuff. If a commercially viable company emerges that can make these meats without any animal exploitation or suffering though, then I might recommend them to others.
From the little I’ve seen of discussions, it depends on the implementation. I haven’t looked at the details yet, but apparently there are some groups who require at least an initial animal biopsy, and I think someone said something about some growth mediums requiring animal exploitation as well.
Then there’s the animal testing side of things.
Since both health and animal rights matter to me, I have no interest in consuming the stuff. If a commercially viable company emerges that can make these meats without any animal exploitation or suffering though, then I might recommend them to others.
I respect this position.
At a certain point I wonder if it will start to seem similar to what I say to anti-choicers (specifically the ones who believe killing an embryo is murder) about drugs developed using embryonic stem cell channels. If years from now they’re still growing off of an initial biopsy taken years before, then the initial harm done is surely outweighed by the harm reduction that came from it. That is to say, a reduction in factory farming and animal slaughter is worth a biopsy. Or even an initial slaughter.
Just like I would encourage my anti-choice family members to get their vaccines and continue to take ibuprofen (and basically every other drug, because most use stem cell lines in their development), I would encourage vegans and vegetarians at the very least not to oppose lab grown meat. But of course you can eat whatever you want.
(Obviously I am not saying you have to agree with me, this is just where I might fall depending on the realities that are eventually reached with lab-grown meat.)
Yeah, to be honest there really is no consensus about this within vegan communities. I would say from an ethical stand point, the biggest thing would be if a company is continually abusing animals in their processes. And animal testing is a difficult subject too, because virtually every food has been subjected to animal testing.
I do think it’s also worth mentioning that plants really are perfectly fine to center a diet around, in and of themselves. I had a really difficult time transitioning to a plant-based diet because addiction is in my genes. But at the same time I was at a place in my life where my health was declining fast, I felt like shit all the time, and I was having to force myself to eat every day. I hated food. But after I got used to eating 100% plants, all of that completely changed. I felt better than I ever had. My arthritis-like symptoms (and other inflammatory problems) completely vanished. I had all kinds of energy that I never used to. And as I got better at cooking plant based and found good places to eat, I actually fell in love with food again. Plants are fucking great.
Depending on an individual’s reasons for following a vegan or vegetarian diet, lab-grown meat may very well be okay.
If their reasons are nutrition based, sure, they should avoid lab-grown meat.
If their reasons are based in the ethics of raising animals for slaughter, factory farming, or the carbon footprint and/or food and water waste involved in raising an entire animal just for parts of it to be food, then lab-grown meat might be fine in their mind.
From the little I’ve seen of discussions, it depends on the implementation. I haven’t looked at the details yet, but apparently there are some groups who require at least an initial animal biopsy, and I think someone said something about some growth mediums requiring animal exploitation as well.
Then there’s the animal testing side of things.
Since both health and animal rights matter to me, I have no interest in consuming the stuff. If a commercially viable company emerges that can make these meats without any animal exploitation or suffering though, then I might recommend them to others.
I respect this position.
At a certain point I wonder if it will start to seem similar to what I say to anti-choicers (specifically the ones who believe killing an embryo is murder) about drugs developed using embryonic stem cell channels. If years from now they’re still growing off of an initial biopsy taken years before, then the initial harm done is surely outweighed by the harm reduction that came from it. That is to say, a reduction in factory farming and animal slaughter is worth a biopsy. Or even an initial slaughter.
Just like I would encourage my anti-choice family members to get their vaccines and continue to take ibuprofen (and basically every other drug, because most use stem cell lines in their development), I would encourage vegans and vegetarians at the very least not to oppose lab grown meat. But of course you can eat whatever you want.
(Obviously I am not saying you have to agree with me, this is just where I might fall depending on the realities that are eventually reached with lab-grown meat.)
Yeah, to be honest there really is no consensus about this within vegan communities. I would say from an ethical stand point, the biggest thing would be if a company is continually abusing animals in their processes. And animal testing is a difficult subject too, because virtually every food has been subjected to animal testing.
I do think it’s also worth mentioning that plants really are perfectly fine to center a diet around, in and of themselves. I had a really difficult time transitioning to a plant-based diet because addiction is in my genes. But at the same time I was at a place in my life where my health was declining fast, I felt like shit all the time, and I was having to force myself to eat every day. I hated food. But after I got used to eating 100% plants, all of that completely changed. I felt better than I ever had. My arthritis-like symptoms (and other inflammatory problems) completely vanished. I had all kinds of energy that I never used to. And as I got better at cooking plant based and found good places to eat, I actually fell in love with food again. Plants are fucking great.