The UK recently approved the first cultivated meat pet food for trials. As someone who's had to navigate the ethical complexity of being a vegan buying meat for my dogs, this feels significant.
But it's more than that. Pet food is the perfect testing ground for cultivated meat. Pets don't care about the cultural aspects of meat. They don't have preconceptions about how their food should be produced.
They just want it to taste good and keep them healthy.
The pet food industry also deals with similar cuts and processing to human food. If we can prove the technology works here, human consumption isn't far behind.
It's fitting that dogs might lead the way. They were the first animals we domesticated, changing our relationship with other species forever. Now they might help us transform how we produce meat.
For years I've felt that cognitive dissonance of buying meat for my dogs while being vegan myself. Soon, that conflict might disappear.
