While some farmers see the development of lab-grown meat as potential competition to traditional production, others say it could create a premium for pasture-reared meat.
There have been numerous research papers about the opportunities for cultured meat, but little work has been undertaken to ask how it might affect farming.
Now a team of farmers, researchers, and start-ups - funded by the BBSRC and the Royal Agricultural University (RAU) - have released a paper looking to redress this balance.
Among the threats that were discussed as part of the two-year project were potential effects on health, and where the product would be pitched in the market, as either a high value or low value protein.
Farmers taking part in the study asked if lab-grown meat would compete with steak or mince, chicken breast or chicken nuggets, while another common concern was the lack of information on the technology.
One farmer who participated in the research, published in the journal Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, said: “There's so much money being thrown at [cultured meat] that we can't afford to ignore it.
"We need to be raising all sorts of questions about things like waste products and sourcing the inputs and that sort of thing.
"We should be pinning them down on that now. They’re telling us this is the future; they’ve got to tell us what it means.”
Some participants saw opportunities. One major lamb and beef producer thought that marketing their produce as “the real stuff” might give them a competitive edge compared to protein produced in a bioreactor.
Others said they could imagine new markets where farms supply plant or animal based raw materials for the process.
The focus group discussions have informed the next phase of the RAU study, mapping how cultured meat might affect different sectors within agriculture.
The farmers talked about far-reaching impacts across the whole livestock industry where margins are small and the industry is under financial pressure.
Dr Lisa Morgans, senior lecturer in animal health at the RAU, who led the focus group research, said farmer perspectives had so far been critical in developing an understanding of how cultured meat could affect the industry.
“They have shared insights that we would not have known about, or appreciated, without involving farmers in a meaningful way," she said.
"To ensure disruptive technologies like cultured meat are developed in an ethical and responsible way, it is essential that we engage with, and include, farmers in the research process.”
The Cultured Meat & Farmers study summarises discussions with 75 farmers, from six focus groups representing a wide range of sectors across the UK.
The team is now partnering with nine case study farms spread across the UK and representing a wide range of farming systems.
Together, they will explore how each farm could respond to this new technology, for example how it could best compete, or how it could supply ingredients, or even produce cultured meat, on farm.
Findings will be used to produce a heat map of the winners and losers in future scenarios where cultured meat is on sale in the UK.
Professor Louise Manning, from the University of Lincoln, a lead author on the paper, said this research was important to consider a just transition for farmers if edible protein was produced using this technology.
She said: “Informing consumers about how the protein is produced, and ensuring the whole process of regulatory approval, process validation, and scale-up is transparent, is also essential to gain societal trust.
"This project is mapping how cultured meat might be produced at scale and what the consequences might be for both rural and urban communities.”
Further findings from the study are due to be published in late 2024.
