Synthetic Agriculture

The shift towards synthetic meat is partly driven by the need to find sustainable alternatives to the cattle industry, a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions. Yet, thesustainabilityof synthetic meats is uncertain. Their current production is water- and energy-intensive, and there are concerns that mass production could lead to more greenhouse gas emissions than traditional cattle farming. Like urban farming, synthetic meat production still faces challenges in reducing its energy and water usage. Several brands of lab-made synthetic beef, chicken, and fish have nowreceived approvalin the U.S. and other countries. One company has even successfully created a meatball from anextinct mammoth.