Could Gen Z be the biggest champions of cultured meat?
The potential of the new food innovation is turning out to be the strongest among the younger generations.
Cultivated chicken produced by UPSIDE Foods, one of a growing number of companies developing meat products that do not require the slaughter of animals. Credit: UPSIDE Foods
A new study polling 13,000 people across 13 countries has found growing global support for cultivated meat, with Gen Z and Millennials emerging as its biggest advocates.
The research, conducted by Leaps by Bayer, Boston Consulting Group, and Ipsos UK, investigated attitudes toward emerging technologies including AI in healthcare, gene therapy, and cultivated meat.
According to the findings, 39 percent of people worldwide hold a positive view of cultivated meat, while only 19 percent hold a negative view. 57 percent of men said they would be willing to try it, compared to 49 percent of women.
The countries most favorable toward the products were Nigeria, Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, and China. Those who viewed it less positively were France, the US, and Germany. Gen Z and Millennials, both hovering around the 46 to 48 percent mark, were the biggest supporters of cultivated meats, while Boomers were the generational group that most widely rejected it.
The study identifies three broad groups of attitudes toward this new technology. The first group are the optimists, who are mainly driven by ethics and are curious toward the products. The second group are the rationalists, who are cautiously curious about the foods but value transparency and rigorous standards. Finally, there are the skeptics - those who view cell-cultured foods as “unnatural” and are distrusting of the process.
Driven by ethical and environmental concerns, Gen Z respondents tended to be curious toward cultivated products and optimistic toward them - however, concerns about safety and long-term consequences persist, even among this forward-thinking generation.
“Cultivated meat has the potential to move from emotional flashpoint to cautious mainstream if it can match conventional meat on taste, price and convenience, while making its safety, nutritional value, and climate/animal welfare benefits visible and independently verified,” said the report.
Credit: UPSIDE Foods
A separate Ipsos poll from last year found that nearly half of Gen Z respondents said they would eat cultivated meat. "This new data underscores what we've known for a long time, that the next generation is driving a seismic shift in food preference," said Jim Mellon, chairman of Agronomics. "Younger people have a growing interest and open-mindedness toward clean food. These are the consumers of the future, and their values are shaping the food system of tomorrow."
In last year’s poll, the biggest reason why respondents viewed these foods positively was that cultured meat products did not involve the slaughter of animals, which was seen as a benefit to 33 percent of those polled. A minimized impact on the environment came as a close second, followed by a reduced risk of zoonotic diseases, which mattered most to 21 percent and 20 percent of respondents respectively.
The California-based startup UPSIDE Foods made history back in 2022 when it became the first company to be granted approval from the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to sell cultivated meat. While it’s not for retail sale just yet, it has been showcased in the US at tasting events (see what Species Unite founder Elizabeth Novogratz thought here).
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