Americans definitely have a weakness for chicken, eating more chicken than pork and beef. In 2022, the average American ate about 98.9 pounds of fried chicken.

This means that more than 8 billion chickens are killed every year. But that could soon change. In November 2022, the Food and Drug Administration made a historic decision and gave the green light for the first time to a company, Upside Foods, to produce lab-grown poultry. Just four months later, the same thing happened to Good Meat, which sold its lab-grown chicken in Singapore.

Safe is one thing, healthy is another. That’s why you may be wondering if you should put lab-grown chicken on your plate. Simply put: yes.

What is lab-grown meat?

Whether you call it lab-grown, cultured or cultured meat, the terms mean the same thing, namely that the tissue or meat product was grown in a lab. “When we grow cells in the lab, we call the process ‘cell culture,’ where we culture or grow the cells to increase the amount we have,” says Rosalyn Abbott, Ph.D., an assistant professor of biomedical engineering in the College of Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, who is co-leading a project on meat production without animal sacrifice.

Here’s how it works: Lab-grown chicken meat is made from cells taken from an egg or live animal. Scientists then evaluate and test these cells, selecting those that produce meat that’s most similar to chicken and can produce even more cells. “This meat is engineered to have the same composition, structure, texture and flavor as conventional meat products,” says Abbott. The cells are then placed in stainless steel containers reminiscent of those found in breweries. Over the next few weeks, the cells feed on nutrients and grow until they can be harvested and molded into the form that ends up on your plate.

Is it safe to eat it?

In its approval of Upside, the FDA wrote: “We have evaluated the information UPSIDE Foods has submitted to the agency and have no additional questions regarding the company’s safety conclusions at this time.” In other words, lab-grown chicken is safe to eat.

But from a chronic disease and health perspective, the verdict is not so clear. “Like any other meat, it can pose the same potential dangers because it is still animal protein,” says Dana Ellis Hunnes, Ph.D., MPH, RD, senior clinical nutritionist at UCLA Medical Center, assistant professor at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, and author of Recipe for survival. These risks include increased inflammatory markers and the associated increase in the risk of cancer and/or tumor growth.

Lab-grown chicken vs. farmed chicken

Because it’s made from chicken cells, the lab-grown version should have a similar texture and flavor to farmed chicken. That means you can use it in dishes just like farmed chicken, Hunnes says.

But what about protein content? Lab-grown chickens may have more protein than traditionally bred chickens. “Because they’re produced in a lab, scientists can control what’s being grown, including the fat and meat content,” she says. That’s not the case with farm animals, whose living conditions (which Hunnes describes as horrific and stressful), lack of exercise and inability to behave naturally, affect the chickens’ health and therefore their meat.

Does that mean, then, that lab-grown chicken is healthier than farm-grown chicken? Not necessarily. “Animal proteins still contain certain amounts of amino acids, some of which may be more inflammatory than others (which are found in higher amounts in plant foods), and those amino acids could potentially be harmful,” says Hunnes.

The benefits of lab-grown meat

Experts see numerous advantages to lab-grown chickens. Here are four of them.

1. Cleaner growth environment: With lab-grown chickens, the environment can be controlled to be clean and sterile, which cannot be said for chickens raised in farms. In fact, experts are concerned that excessive use of antibiotics could lead to antibacterial resistance, but with lab-grown chickens, this is ruled out, as are food-borne illnesses and other diseases such as bird flu that animals could transmit to humans. “The probability of bacterial contamination should be virtually zero,” says Hunnes.
2. Less impact on the environment: The environmental impact of chicken farming is enormous. “The majority of livestock is raised in concentrated animal feedlots, causing environmental, health and food safety problems, including zoonotic diseases and dramatic weather events that lead to livestock shortages,” says Abbott. “Cultivated meat reduces agricultural land use, water use and greenhouse gas emissions, and improves energy efficiency.” Upside Foods cites a study suggesting that cultured meat could use 90% less land and emit up to 90% fewer greenhouse gases than animal meat.
3. Faster production times: Instead of waiting years for farm-raised chickens to grow, cultured meat can be grown in a matter of weeks, Abbott says. At Good Meat, for example, the meat can be harvested four to six weeks later after the cells are put into a cultivator.
4. Fewer slaughters: Lab-grown chicken meat doesn’t require the slaughter of animals, meaning it could potentially save the lives of billions of chickens. Upside Foods, for example, used a single fertilized chicken egg to grow the meat currently served in a California restaurant. The cells derived from that egg can be stored for at least 10 years and used to make new meat. Another benefit? “By only producing the tissue that will be consumed, cultured meat doesn’t require the rest of the animal to be grown and sacrificed,” Abbott says.

The disadvantages

However, there are some disadvantages to breeding chickens in a laboratory, including the following two.

1. Lack of availability: It will take a long time for the amount of lab-grown chicken to grow to the amount of meat Americans eat, Hunnes says. And of course, some states like Florida and Alabama have raised that hurdle even further by banning cultured meat before it’s even ready for the market.
2. Price: Currently, cultured meat products are more expensive than conventional products, so don’t be surprised if they cost more than farmed chicken in the supermarket. “But as technology advances, the price will come down,” says Abbott.

So should you eat lab-grown chicken?

Yes, especially given all the positive aspects behind it. And while it may seem strange to think about lab-grown meat, “it’s the same as eating meat that was traditionally raised in a chicken,” Abbott says. Chicken is such an important part of the American diet that one day it will probably even seem normal to eat lab-grown chicken instead of traditionally raised chicken.

The conclusion

Don’t be afraid to try lab-grown chicken if you get the chance. Whether you want to spare the suffering of farmed chickens or reduce the impact of your diet on the climate, eating lab-grown chicken accomplishes both goals, and that’s something to be excited about. As Abbott says, “Future generations will want to know where their meat comes from and feel empowered when they choose options that protect animals and our environment.”