As the world population increases to 10 billion by 2050, total food and meat production must rise by 70 and 100%, respectively, to satisfy global demand. The US food production system faces several issues in meeting this demand. Increasing water scarcity in major production regions and increasing vulnerability to disruptions from natural disasters due to climate change are just some of the growing issues that prompt the need for new technologies in meat production. Also, a critical challenge in food supply chains is food loss issues that present significant sustainability and security challenges, with 60 percent of meat becoming processing waste (1.4 billion tons for livestock; 800 million tons for seafood). New sources of sustainable and nutritional protein would help address these concerns and focus on the present proposal. Cultivated meat production is emerging as a feasible solution to address immediate societal problems by developing new sustainable agri-food systems to feed a rapidly growing global population. This industry will provide nutritious and safe foods for consumer options while reducing environmental impact (78-96% fewer greenhouse gas emissions, 99% less land use, and 82-96% less water use).
This proposed work aims to develop new adoptable techno-economically viable cultivated meat systems and develop new educational platforms for training future professionals. We have assembled a research team that uniquely combines a molecular biologist, a biomedical engineer, a food engineer, a biosystems engineer, a data scientist, a protein chemist, a flavor chemist, a sensory expert, a food safety specialist, an environmental scientist, and a consumer specialist, each of whom has long-standing research interest in sustainable food production systems. This proposal brings together six different academic institutions with Tufts University, Virginia Tech, MIT, University of California, Davis, Virginia State University (HBCU), and the University of Massachusetts, Boston .