41%

CAGR

The cultured meat market is expected to grow by 41% CAGR, 2025 - 2040

84%

Less Water

is needed to produce 1 kg of cultured meat compared to 1kg of conventional meat

78.6%

Fewer Emissions

Producing cultured meat emits 3 kg of CO2 emissions, while producing 1 kg of conventional meat emits 14 kg. That’s 78.6% fewer carbon emissions.

View Our Analysis

The Path to Drawdown: Plant-based Diet

The meat-centric diet in the West is responsible for one-fifth of global emissions. Land clearing, fertilizer use, and methane from burping cattle take an enormous toll on the environment and the climate.

Transitioning to a diet rich in plants is a healthier demand-side solution that reduces emissions. If the world adopted a vegan diet, business-as-usual emissions could be reduced by as much as 70%, and a vegetarian diet could reduce emissions by 63%. On top of this, adopting a plant-based diet could help save $1 trillion in annual health-care costs and lost productivity.

Global dietary preferences based on meat, fish and dairy products are deeply ingrained in Western cultures. Lower-income countries will also likely adopt animal-based diets as they develop. Bringing about dietary change requires plant-based options that are widely available, visible, and enticing, including high-quality meat substitutes.

Project Drawdown estimates that, if 75% of the world adopts a plant-rich diet by 2050, this dietary change can reduce GHG emissions by up to 91.72 gigatons: 68.32 gigatons from diverted agricultural production, 23.16 gigatons from avoided land conversion, and 0.24 gigatons from sequestration from ecosystem protection.

About

MeaTech 3D Ltd. (stock ticker: MITC) develops technology that can 3D print cultured meat using animal stem cells. Headquartered in Ness Ziona, Israel, they went public on March 11, 2021.

MITC’s Role in Drawdown

What MeaTech offers is not plant-based, but their technology does promise to substantially reduce land use for cattle, methane emission, fertilizer use and animal suffering. MeaTech manufactures the technology that produces lab-grown meat, particularly beef and chicken, without harming any animals in the process. Their process starts by taking stem cells from umbilical cord samples from animals. These stem cells are then reproduced under ideal conditions and differentiated into fat and muscle cells once reaching sufficient quantities. 

The fat and muscle cells are made into bio-inks, which are used to 3D print meats of different qualities (lean, marbled, etc.). The printed meat products are incubated to mature and form tissues, finally becoming identical to meat from conventional.

MeaTech’s products are produced in a fraction of the time required to produce conventional meat. They’re also land-efficient (p. 27), with far lower water use and carbon emissions.

MITC: What We Like

We’ll update this section as MeaTech makes more sustainability information available.

What We Want to See Improve

Achieve Commercialization

MeaTech is still in the phase of developing their 3D meat printing technology and hasn’t yet reached commercialization. We are eager to see them scale to the point of selling their technology.

Report GHG Emissions

As a very young company, MeaTech hasn’t yet issued a sustainability report. In the future, we would like to see them publish an annual sustainability report with key sustainability metrics, particularly their direct and indirect GHG emissions.

Related Plant-Based Diet Stocks in the Climate Index

View All Climate Index Stocks →

Allocated Company Description

0.49%

 Oatly Group AB (OTLY)

Oatley makes alternatives to dairy products from oats like milk, frozen desserts, and yogurt. Plant-based food can greatly cut emissions from agriculture

0.40%

 Beyond Meat (BYND)

Beyond Meat makes burgers, sausages, beef, and meatballs from plant-based sources. Plant-based diet can massively cut emissions from agriculture

0.28%

 The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. (HAIN)

HAIN sells meat alternative and plant-based food made from soy, rice, oats, almonds and coconut. Plant-based food is a key Drawdown solution

0.05%

 SunOpta Inc. (STKL)

SunOpta makes plant-based and fruit-based food and beverage products. Plant-based diet can cut emissions from agriculture

0.02%

 Burcon NutraScience Corp. (BRCN)

BRCN makes plant proteins and ingredients that go into food and beverage products. Plant-based food can massively cut emissions from agriculture

0.02%

 Laird Superfood, Inc. (LSF)

Laird Superfood makes plant-based and functional foods for optimal well-being and high-performance. Plant-based diet is a key Drawdown solution

0.02%

 MeaTech 3D Ltd. (MITC)

MeaTech makes lab-grown meat that’s 3D printed using stem cells. Their process doesn’t harm animals. Meat-free diet can massively cut agriculture emissions
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