Honours programme
Cellular agriculture
This module is made to be used by high school students aged 16, 17 or 18 years old. The module can be used in any class but is recommended for the courses biology and science.
Authors: Virginia Buonavita, Sam Houdijk, Vera van Lier, Chathuranga Samarasinghe, Julia Silveira Master’s honours programme, Wageningen University and Research. With cooperation of: Prof.Dr.Ir. Karin Schroen – Wageningen University & Research Dr.Habil. Julia Keppler – Wageningen University & Research Drs. Edgar de Wit – Wageningen pre-university Ir. Heleen Bot – Wageningen pre-university Dr. João Marques Garcia – Wageningen University & Research Mariana Hase Ueta PhD – Wageningen University & Research Ismael Bawah – The Good Food Institute Jesse Mesman - Meatable Juan David Lopez Taborda PhD – Delft University of Technology Dr. Remco Kornet - Vivici Sarah Kunze PhD – Wageningen University & Research Stanislav Yordanov -Mosa Meat Stefan Ten Voorde PhD – Wageningen University & Research This module was developed by the Cellular Agriculture group of the Master's Honours Programme of Wageningen University, with the help of various supervisors and Wageningen pre-university. Permission was given to Wageningen pre-university to alter the material for optimal usage. In developing this module, the authors used scientific sources, referenced and linked at the end of the module. Additionally, knowledge from the authors and experts in the field was used. This module was carefully compiled. The master's honours programme of Wageningen University and authors accept no liability for inaccuracies and/or omissions in the module. Additionally, the authors cannot be held responsible for any damage, originated from (use of) this module.
Chapter 1: The umbrella of cellular agriculture
Cellular agriculture; maybe you have already heard about it, and maybe you have no idea what we are talking about. Find out the basics of cellular agriculture by watching the video below!
Chapter 2 – The technical aspects of cultured meat
Cultured meat is a product that we can already make using cellular agriculture. Learn more about the history and need for cultured meat with Mariana in the first video, and the technical process with João. You can even learn how to make a model to simulate using cellular agriculture in space, and join Paul, Soleil, and Lorenzo in the lab where cultured meat is produced using maize and spinach leaves.
History and need for cultured meat
Why did the concept of cultured meat arise? When was the first meat-product produced with cellular agriculture? Why do we need cultured meat? Find out the answers to these questions and more in the video
Extras
Can cellular agriculture be used in space? Maybe this sounds like a very out-of-the-box question, but it is something that is actually being researched as of right now. Cellular agriculture in space would provide an alternative source of protein for astronauts that is made right then and there: in space. However, there are of course various challenges that come with this vision of cellular agriculture in space. Our own researchers made a model to visualise and calculate the bottlenecks that present themselves in this topic. Especially for you, we have created a simplified version of this model, so that you can experience what a model like this does, and how it should be operated. Check out this modelling tool here!
Technical Process
How is cultivated meat produced? What is needed for cells to grow, and what are optimal environmental circumstances for the development of cultivated meat? Find out this, and more, in part one, and part two of the technical videos by João.
Part 1
Part 2
Extra:
Jupyter Plan
Can cellular agriculture be used in space? Maybe this sounds like a very out-of-the-box question, but it is something that is actually being researched as of right now. Cellular agriculture in space would provide an alternative source of protein for astronauts that is made right then and there: in space. However, there are of course various challenges that come with this vision of cellular agriculture in space. Our own researchers made a model to visualise and calculate the bottlenecks that present themselves in this topic. Especially for you, we have created a simplified version of this model, so that you can experience what a model like this does, and how it should be operated.
Extra:
Laboratory Experience
Our own researchers performed an experiment to see whether maize- and spinach leaves can be used as scaffolds to grow meat on. Watch the following video to see how they did this and what the results were.
Chapter 3 – The environmental aspects of cellular agriculture
You now have a general understanding of cellular agriculture, the history of cultured meat, and the reasons why it could be essential for the future. You’ve also explored the technical aspects of cultured meat production. But what about the environmental aspects of cellular agriculture? You will learn more about it in the interactive presentation below.
Chapter 4 – The social aspects of cultured meat
This chapter introduces the social aspects of cellular agriculture through an in-class discussion. The expected duration of this discussion-chapter is about 40 minutes, including reading the chapter and having the discussions. The discussion will take place through a ‘think, pair, share’ methods. 
Students will be split into four different groups: farmers, consumers, companies, government, and should keep the perspectives of each of these groups in mind when they are thinking of arguments for the discussion.   
How do you imagine the future of food? Are cellular agriculture products part of the future you imagine? Why or why not? There is no right or wrong answer, as long as you can back up your opinions! In this chapter, we encourage you to read up on the debates below and discuss them with your classmates. 
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First, take 5 minutes to read the text below, and THINK of arguments for and against cellular agriculture coming from the group you were assigned (farmers, consumers, companies, or government).  Feel free to write down your ideas. You can also add your concerns, opportunities and ideas of how this technology could look like. Then, PAIR with your neighbour and discuss for 5 more minutes. In your discussion, try to avoid buts, and only use ands! This way, we can try to build on each other’s arguments and try to find a way to respond to each other’s needs and concerns – improv style. Take another 5 minutes to write down all arguments (both for and against) that you can think of on an A4 piece of paper. Try and do this in a way that is logical for both of you.  
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After you have written down all arguments you can think of, you must leave your partner and find a different group mate. Repeat the exercise with your new group mate (15 minutes). The arguments you come up with will be compared with the ones you had come up with in the first part of the exercise. As a class, we will then SHARE in a group discussion, reflecting on which similarities and differences you found in the different trials of the exercise, and why you think these came up. The group discussion (Discuss!) will take roughly 10 minutes.  During this discussion, the whole class gets back together and you can share some of the ideas that came up in the different pairs. What are the biggest concerns and challenges? What are the biggest opportunities? In which ways could these groups collaborate to build a food future together?
Reading Material
Lab grown meat could (not) help solving the increasing demand of animal products in the future. 
As seen in the previous chapter, many believe that moving from meat to meat alternatives in high and upper middle-income countries might lead to less use of global agricultural land and greenhouse gas emissions from the agriculture, forestry, and other land use sectors. At the same time, others suspect that environmental impact from the introduction of alternative proteins into our markets will not be as positive or sustainable as is sometimes suggested.
Some big questions remain - how likely is cultured meat to substitute animal meat? Are plant-based alternative sufficient? Do we really need alternatives at all, or could we just move to a vegetarian diet in the future? 
The global consumption of meat products is expected to increase by 14% (44 mega tonnes) over the next ten years. Though the alternative protein market is growing, this has not decreased the demand for animal meat products. The meat substitute market earned around 5.94 billion euros in 2020, and is expected to grow to 10.16 billion euro by 2025v. At the same time, in 2020, revenues for fresh meat reached 751.34 billion euros in 2020, and are predicted to increase to 1,107.00 billion by 2025vi.
 With this in mind, could cultured meat become just another product in the market?  
The alternative proteins market is dominated by the same major players of the meat industry including JBS, Tyson Foods, Cargill and Smithfield - the world’s four largest meat-producing corporations. Over the years, Cargill has invested in lab grown meat and plant-based alternatives, JBS purchased a Spanish lab grown meat firm called Bio.Tech.Foods and invested another 93 million in lab grown meat, and Unilever purchased The Vegetarian Butcher. 
At the moment, it is unclear what the lab meat sector would look like. Who will produce cultured meat and who is already able to adopt the technologies? Which countries allow for the production of cultured meat? What are the implications of all of this?  
Case Study: Cellular agriculture around the world 
All over the world, there are many discussions on whether cellular agriculture should be implemented as a new practice. Overall, it is not widely accepted, however there are some countries that have worked on a regulatory framework and allowed it in their markets. For instance, in 2020, the sale of cultivated meat was made possible in Singapore and, in 2022, it was approved in some North American states. Many countries still do not have clearly defined regulations for the production and sale of cultured meat, and existing regulations tend to focus on ensuring that the product is safe to eat.
The cases of Singapore and Florida  
On the 1st of December 2020, the Singaporean company “Eat Just Inc” was the first to receive regulatory approval to sell their cultivated chicken bites. Since then, the government of Singapore has invested in cellular agriculture as a strategy to meet 30% of the country’s local food requirements by 2030x. Those that are supportive of this decision claim that this technology could become a new “craft industry”, for niche markets and to develop a new blend of ‘traditional-cellular’ agritourism models.  
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All Singaporean companies putting pre-packaged alternative protein products on the market are required to label these products as “mock”, “cultured” or “plant-based”, so that consumers are aware of where they come from and can make conscious choices.  
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In 2024, on the other side of the world, the state of Florida banned cellular agriculture, with many claiming that more time is needed for this technology to be developed. Those supportive of putting the technology on the market say that blocking this violates free market principles usually supported in the US, and takes away the consumer’s choice of what they would like to include in their diet.  
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In terms of price, cellular agriculture has generally become more accessible than when it was first introduced in 2013, where the first cultivated meat burger cost around €250,000 to make. In 2022, the price of cultivated meat had already fallen to roughly € 8,12 euros € 8,84 euros to produce a burger. With improved production and lowered material costs, prices are expected to fall more, however not to the extent that cultivated meat will become cheaper than the average burger to be purchased at a grocery store or restaurant. 
Bonus Activity
Ok, but would you eat it? (10 minutes)
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Students form a line across the classroom, with a YES on one end and a NO on the other. Taking a physical position along this line, they can relate their own perspectives to that of others.  
Chapter 5 – People in cellular agriculture
Now that you’ve learned how cellular agriculture works and explored environmental and social issues, it’s time to meet some of the people working in this field. We’ve got some interviews with workers from the world of cellular agriculture for you. Listen to these interviews and after each one, answer the questions on your own.
(with regards to privacy and consent, these interviews are stored at the honours office, and can be retrieved upon contact)
Interview Template
[INTERVIEW n° ]
What do you find most interesting and least interesting about the work done by the person interviewed? ________________________________
What do you think are the most important skills for doing that job?
-___________________________________________________________
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FINAL QUESTIONS
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Which was your favourite interview? Why?
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Which of these job roles do you feel most suited for?
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What do you think are other important roles in the field of cellular agriculture?
Chapter 6 – Final reflection
Congratulations! You’ve reached the end of this journey on cellular agriculture. You and your classmates have hopefully learned a lot of new information about this field and practiced debate and reflection activities. Now, we ask you to think about the path you’ve taken and share what you found most useful and interesting, and what you found less so. Below, you’ll find some questions to help you. Your teacher will then ask you and your classmates to share your thoughts and discuss the journey you’ve taken.
-Did you already know about the field of cellular agriculture, or had you heard of it before?
-Do you think you learned something new about the topic?
-Which chapter was the most interesting and which was the least interesting? Why?
-Would you recommend your friends and family to learn about the topic of cellular agriculture? Why/Why not?
-If it were available, would you eat cultured meat. Why/ why not?