Cultivated meat is not a new phenomenon, but technology that produces delicious cultivated meat at affordable prices is. Rahim Rajwani, the co-founder of Atelier Meats, wants something better than vat-grown protein that passes for chicken nuggets and meatballs. He envisions a future when cultivated meat sustains the world’s exploding population, contributes to the battle to save the planet, and tastes as good as conventional pork chops, steaks, and chicken breasts. 

Rajwani put himself through university while working in his family’s restaurants. When his uncle retired and sold the business, Rajwani had to envision a new future. Friends at a brokerage firm landed him an interview, and he began training as an investment advisor. 

After weathering the dot com crash and the financial crisis of 2008-9, he decided it was time to launch his own firm. Today, Rajwani combines his decades of experience in food, investing, and entrepreneurship to found Atelier Meats, a small company with big goals that offers viable solutions to the looming global issues of food shortage and climate change.

What is cultivated meat?

Based on appearances, a steak from Atelier Meats looks like a regular cut of meat, though it was never attached to any animal. This level of cultivated meat is groundbreaking, but it is rooted in decades-old technology. In the medical field of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, researchers have worked to grow muscles, ligaments, and tendons for trauma victims and cancer survivors for years.

“Today, we’re combining medical advances in tissue generation with our own proprietary technology to produce high-quality food for human consumption,” explains Rajwani. “Some of the cells in our bodies work to produce new muscles and fat as we grow. Cows, chickens, and fish grow new muscle and fat in the same way. In our lab, we use these animal cells to grow the same muscle and fat. With the right cells and scaffolds, we can reproduce any type of meat, and it tastes identical to conventional meat. Our goal is to provide T-Bone steaks, ribs, and more — any meat you buy in the grocery store.”

Cultivated meat begins with cells harvested from living animals and ends with real meat, meaning it is not plant-based protein. “To grow a steak in the lab, we need cow DNA,” Rajwani says. “We process the DNA and then allow the cells to grow in a bioreactor.”

Cultivated meat is a sustainable and ethical choice

Many people adopt meatless diets in light of mounting environmental concerns. According to a recent study, meat accounts for almost 60% of greenhouse gasses in the food industry. For every 3.5 oz of beef protein, the agriculture industry produces a global average of 110 lbs. of greenhouse gasses.

In addition, raising animals for sustenance is highly inefficient. Clearing land for livestock is responsible for 41% of the world’s deforestation. On Atelier’s website, the company reports that livestock consumes 77% of global farmland, even though meat makes up only 18% of human calorie consumption. The bottom line is that industrial agriculture leads to water pollution, disease, and waste. 

Cultivated meat is environmentally friendly because it requires minimal land and eliminates the deforestation and water pollution caused by agricultural livestock. Many other vegans and vegetarians stop eating meat because they cannot condone the way livestock animals are treated, but cultivated meat provides them with a more ethical alternative.

“Our company will never harm or kill an animal,” comments Rajwani. “The technology we employ only requires humanely harvested DNA. Furthermore, we will deal only with farmers raising animals in cruelty-free conditions and not for slaughter. Cultured meat can revolutionize the meat industry and allow people to eat meat guilt-free.”

Cultivated meat is a healthier option

Animal rights activists and environmentalists aren’t the only ones who have a vested interest in cultivated meat. Potential consumers also include people with health conditions such as heart disease or diabetes. 

“Because cultivated meat is healthier than traditional meat, it will appeal to anyone who has stopped eating meat due to health concerns,” remarks Rajwani. “Our patent-pending technology allows us to fine-tune the amount of protein and fat marbling in the meat”. 

To meet the demand for healthier options, the market is already saturated with imitation meats derived from plant-based proteins such as soy. Unfortunately, these products try to imitate the texture and taste of meat with unhealthy ingredients like sodium.

“Sodium is typically among the first ingredients listed for fake meat products,” says Rajwani. “We will produce cultivated meat with no sodium and the natural taste and texture of meat without harmful additives.”

Another health concern springs from modern farming methods. To produce meat efficiently enough to meet global demand, farmers turn to a highly mechanized process called factory farming, in which thousands of animals are packed into close confinement where all kinds of bacteria thrive. As such, farmers frequently pump these animals full of antibiotics to prevent infections from running rampant. 

This practice is linked to significant health concerns. According to a recent article in ZME Science, “The use of antibiotics in the meat industry is one of the main causes of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and the meat industry is an important driver of zoonotic diseases — diseases that jump from animals to humans.” Cultivated meat, on the other hand, grows in a clean environment and creates a cleaner planet.

Cultivated meat can taste as good as the real thing

Until recently, cultivated meat was only viable for products like meatballs and chicken nuggets. Today’s breakthrough technology allows Atelier Meats to produce cuts of meat that people can toss right onto the grill.

“Our meat is not shapeless and unstructured,” Rajwani says. “Our goal is to have the flavor, texture, and marbling of conventional steaks, pork chops, and chicken breasts.” 

Atelier Meats is focused on taste, but its ultimate mission involves a brighter and more humane future for the world. “The United Nations says 25,000 people, including over 10,000 children, die of starvation every day, and 854 million people worldwide are undernourished,” Rajwani remarks. “High food prices will drive another 100 million into poverty and hunger as the population continues to grow. My five-year goal for Atelier is to build a cultured meat bioreactor in a third-world country where famine is high. The equipment in one warehouse could feed a village. Cultivated meat is a sustainable model for feeding the global population. That’s the bigger picture.”