Why Musk is Pro Lab Grown Meat. On paper.
The billionaire is a disrupter by nature. His refusal to accept that meat production is in need of an overhaul is out of character. A radicalisation by his own platform or a vested interest?
A few weeks before the truly walloping Democratic defeat which led to Elon Musk’s appointment as co-head of the Department Of Government Efficiency (DOGE), First Buddy and Chief Budget Torcher, he appeared on the “Joe Rogan Experience” podcast. The conversation inevitably turned to the environmental impacts of meat. Or rather, the alleged lack of, since both appeared very much in agreement that meat consumption had little to no effect on climate change. Musk described the notion of cutting back on meat to combat climate change as irrelevant while Rogan insinuated the push for plant based diets might be driven by ideological or economic agendas rather than environmental and existential necessity.
Not only do their claims lack any basis in scientific fact, they boldly fly against the well-established scientific consensus that animal agriculture contributes between 15-20% of Global Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. If not far more. Their claims also entirely overlook the myriad of externalities attributed to animal agriculture: deforestation, loss of biodiversity, species extinction, water and antibiotic overuse, waste run-off, methane emissions, opportunity costs and many more.
With a combined audience of nearly 220 million between Rogan’s podcast listeners and Musk’s social media followers, such claims are not just false but dangerous. They spread misinformation and encourage behaviours that accelerate climate change and environmental collapse.
Whilst Musk’s stance on cultivated meat is unclear, he is no stranger to it. In 2022, Space X assisted Aleph farms’ research into cultivating meat in space by delivering cow cells to the ISS. That does, however, seem to be the extent of his involvement with a technology that in his mind solves a non-problem: the sustainable production of meat and animal products.
This is striking because Elon Musk is at his core a disrupter. From PayPal to Tesla, SpaceX to Starlink, his ventures have consistently dismantled entrenched systems and redefined what’s possible. He’s slashed rocket launch costs, reshaped renewable energy, and transformed global internet access. Disruption is central to his messianic ideology.
With a remarkable track record of challenging the status quo, why then stop short of the meat industry, an archaic industry ripe for disruption? One steeped in terrible cruelty and outrageous inefficiency: feeding a cow 100 calories yields only 2 to 3 calories of meat. As a self proclaimed enemy of inefficiency, a die hard advocate of technology and a fanatic believer in innovation’s ability to overcome any of humanity's challenges, from climate change to colonising Mars, shouldn’t Musk be championing Alternative Proteins: a technology that can feed the world without consuming the planet?
What’s all the more vexing is that besides his extensive influence, wealth and network, his Tesla background means he is exceptionally well suited to help the Alternative Protein industry past current bottlenecks and scaling challenges. Many of which he would have already faced with Tesla since the industries share a surprising amount of parallels. Both are responsible for a huge slice of global GHG emissions. Both are challenging incumbents whose products are deeply rooted in consumer identity and culture. Both must overcome obstacles with consumer trust and acceptance. And both struggle with early scaling challenges due to significant upfront investments.
Through a variety of tactics, Electric Vehicles (EVs) have captured 20% of market share. Alternative Protein technology, which produces bio-identical food products at the fraction of the environmental footprint, must achieve the same if we are to realistically tackle climate change and stay within safe boundaries. Investing in Alternative Proteins was shown to have the highest CO2 equivalent savings per dollar of invested capital of any sector. Any delay in disrupting our food industry compromises our ability to meet critical climate goals. The field is progressing rapidly and lessons learned from EVs provide a valuable roadmap but a serial disrupter focused on urgent issues at home rather than lofty dreams of space domination could be a game changer. If the sounds coming out of Mar-el-Lago are anything to go by, Musk may have already overstayed his welcome and the end of the bromance is in sight. Should he need a project to keep his mind off the heartbreak, let him know the next frontier may be as close as our dinner tables.