A new book by Bruce Friedrich argues that cultivated and plant-based meats offer a sustainable alternative to traditional livestock farming, which contributes significantly to environmental harm. In an interview, Friedrich highlights the inefficiencies and emissions of conventional meat production while outlining the potential for innovation in alternative proteins. He calls for collaboration between new and traditional industry players to drive progress.
Bruce Friedrich, founder and president of the Good Food Institute, has released a book titled Meat: How the Next Agricultural Revolution Will Transform Humanity’s Favorite Food — and Our Future. The book examines the environmental and efficiency costs of conventional meat production and advocates for alternatives like cultivated and plant-based meats.
Friedrich points to a 2006 United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization report, Livestock’s Long Shadow, which details how animal agriculture drives deforestation, climate change, air and water pollution, water depletion, and biodiversity loss. It identifies livestock as the leading cause of deforestation. He notes that these issues have intensified, with animal agriculture now accounting for about 20 percent of global climate emissions. The inefficiency is stark: producing one calorie of chicken requires nine calories of feed, while pork or farmed fish needs 10 or more, and ruminants like cows demand even greater inputs, resulting in over 800 percent food waste.
Global meat production has risen 65 percent in the past 25 years and is projected to increase similarly by 2050, exacerbating these problems. Friedrich compares the shift to transitions in energy and transportation, emphasizing an 'all-of-the-above' approach. Options include plant-based meats that mimic animal products indistinguishably and at lower cost, and cultivated meats grown in factories from animal cells, as demonstrated by companies like Mission Barns, Impossible Foods, and Eat Just.
One example is a pork product from fat donated by a sanctuary pig named Dawn in upstate New York, cultivated by Mission Barns and blended with plant ingredients. Despite challenges like state bans on cultivated meat and backlash against 'ultra-processed' foods affecting firms like Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods, Friedrich argues plant-based options are healthier, with less fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and calories, plus more fiber and protein.
He urges incentives for adoption, citing profit potential, food security benefits for nations like China, Japan, and Korea, and U.S. bipartisan support for economic reasons. Friedrich advises collaboration with the traditional meat industry, warning against resisting change like Kodak did with photography, and instead embracing opportunities like Canon.
