Hey smarties! We’re on a break for the holidays and revisiting some of our top episodes from 2023. We can’t do this show without you and we still need your support. If you can, donate today to keep independent journalism going strong into 2024 and beyond. Give now to support Make Me Smart. Thank you so much for your generosity, happy holidays and we’ll see you in the new year.
Americans love to eat meat. Last year alone, the average American ate 227 pounds poultry, pork and beef. But meat production comes with its own set of ethical and environmental consequences. So how do we get around these concerns? Dozens of startups say they’ve got the answer: lab-grown meat.
Growing beef or chicken in a lab out of a few tiny animal cells may sound like something out of a sci-fi novel, something that will happen far off in the future, but with nearly $3 billion invested in the lab-grown meat industry, that future may already be near.
“I think that that the supermarket, like tackling a Safeway or Kroger, I think that is easily five to 10 years away. The FDA has already given it a green light. They said it is safe to eat, which means that it is one step closer to being in a restaurant,” says Larissa Zimberoff, a journalist and author of “Technically Food: Inside Silicon Valley’s Mission to Change What We Eat.”
On the show today, Zimberoff explains how meat is grown in a lab, why companies are banking on it as a solution to our omnivore’s dilemma, and the challenges that lie ahead for the growing industry. Plus, is lab-grown food here to stay?
In the News Fix: We have a deal on the debt ceiling. After weeks of back and forth, President Joe Biden and House Republicans have struck a tentative deal to raise the debt limit. We get into what it all means, and why the negotiating might not be over.
Later, a listener weighs in on retailer return policies, and our beloved intern gets creative with his answer to the Make Me Smart question.
Here’s everything we talked about today:
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- “Will I See Lab-Grown Meat in Supermarkets Any Time Soon?” from Bon Appétit
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- “Lab-Grown Meat’s Carbon Footprint Potentially Worse Than Retail Beef” from the University of California, Davis
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- “Silicon Valley Is Coming for Your Chocolate” from The Atlantic
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- “Inside the Battle Between Big Ag and Lab-Grown Meat” from The New Republic
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- “What’s in the Debt-Ceiling Deal” from The Wall Street Journal
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- “Defiant House Rejects Huge Bailout; Next Step Is Uncertain” from The New York Times
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- “House Passes Bailout Bill in 263-171 Vote” from The New York Times
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