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There\u2019s no denying that eating animal flesh is immensely popular. \u201cThe protein is the star\u201d is a common refrain about a dish or meal. Indeed, when we describe what\u2019s on our plate, we often begin with the choice of animal being served.<\/p>\n
Of course, not all of us eat meat. For many, it\u2019s a matter of religious conviction, but there are a whole host of other reasons to choose a vegetarian or vegan diet, including animal welfare and environmental costs. Factory farming that prioritizes profits and production far over critter well-being results in imagery so horrific that \u201cag-gag<\/a>\u201d laws are in place in some states to stop people from seeing how the sausage literally gets made. These prohibitions seem more for the benefit of the meat industry than simply shielding our delicate sensibilities. A loss in appetite is a loss in profit, after all.<\/p>\n Raising livestock for human consumption is also environmentally messy. Compared to plant protein, animal protein\u00a0requires<\/a>\u00a0more water and acreage and produces more pollution per gram.\u00a0<\/p>\n It makes sense that brands and start-ups invest immense amounts of time, effort, and capital in meat alternatives. In the last few years, we\u2019ve seen many plant-based brands emerge, and the alt-meat explosion has been so great that we might be amid consumer-interest\u00a0rubberbanding<\/a>.<\/p>\n Still, like other \u201cpretender\u201d tech like Artificial Intelligence (AI), plant-based meats get pretty close to the real deal but are always just different enough to discern the distinction. To make a protein that genuinely tastes like traditional meat without the environmental and animal welfare drawbacks, companies must dive deeper and design alt-meat at the cellular level.<\/p>\n Meat grown from cells in bioreactors differs significantly from widely available plant-based alternatives. Instead of taking protein-rich plants like peas and soy and manipulating them into foods resembling chicken nuggets and ground beef, cultivated meat is based on an animal cell replicated and produced in laboratories.<\/p>\n We\u2019re still years away from seeing slabs of lab-raised ribeye steaks sold alongside cuts sliced off a dead cow everywhere, but lab meat has finally made it onto retail shelves, sort of. Good Meat, part of the Eat Just company that markets the egg alternative Just Egg, recently\u00a0partnered<\/a>\u00a0with Singaporean-based Hubert\u2019s Butchery to offer Good Meat 3 to retail customers in the affluent Asian city-state.<\/p>\n We didn\u2019t see the first two installments, but Good Meat 3 is best described as plant-based meat with a bit of cultivated animal protein included\u2014a whole three percent. It\u2019s certainly a start, but it\u2019s hard to draw many conclusions from the small retail trial except that maybe more are on the way.<\/p>\n For starters, the branding isn\u2019t visually barn-busting. But then again, just making it to retail is a compelling enough brand story for Good Meat. Moreover, traditional butcher packaging is more function than style and consists of many cellophane-wrapped trays or meat wrapped in thick paper.<\/p>\n In fact, Good Meat comes packed in Hubert\u2019s in-store packaging, and its branding is nowhere to be found. It looks like ordinary bits of chicken you\u2019d pick up from the butcher. That could be intentional. It\u2019s supposed to be just like chicken from a formerly alive fowl but better. Presenting Good Meat like regular meat reinforces the value proposition.<\/p>\n Elsewhere, Good Meat is consistent with other Eat Just branding. It has a minimal rectangular outline and simple text that uses negative space to remind consumers what the product isn\u2019t: conventional eggs or chicken. Regardless, future cultivated meat products will need informative packaging. Early adopters in a market are typically more informed and curious, and they don\u2019t need labels to drive their purchase of something novel, new, or limited. But in the future, consumers will need help convincing in the store.<\/p>\n Unlike plant-based meats like Beyond and Impossible, cultivated meat must also overcome some fear and apprehension about the \u201cunnatural\u201d process of growing meat in a lab. For some reason, raising little chicks into full-grown birds, then killing them with a slice to the throat, and finally de-feathering the carcasses in boiling water skeeves fewer people out than folks in white coats making meat in sterile laboratories.<\/p>\n The government isn\u2019t known for its speedy reactions to innovation, but some states have already\u00a0passed<\/a>\u00a0laws against cultivated meat, preempting the market. Cultivated meat is already illegal in Florida and Alabama, and bills in Arizona and Tennessee were considered but failed.<\/p>\n Good Meat landing on retail shelves is an indication that we should start at least thinking about cultivated meat packaging and branding. We can take the lessons from plant-based meat and design branding that highlights positive differences while delivering a satisfying culinary experience. Cultured meat branding has to reinforce the decision to seek out lab-grown meat for environmental and animal well-being. Cultured meat has to point out its superior taste to plant-based products while being closer to real flesh. Finally, lab meat has to do all the aforementioned successfully enough to justify the premium price point to conventional meat, especially until the market scales up and prices start to fall.<\/p>\n \u201cWe all want to do better for the environment, but are we willing to change our mindset about meat production to accomplish it? That\u2019s the core challenge Good Meat will tackle in bringing their lab-grown, \u2018cultivated\u2019 chicken to market,\u201d says Margaret Russo, group creative director, new media,\u00a0Chase Design Group<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cFor Good Meat, finding the balance will be key,\u201d she adds.\u201d The brand will have to ride that thin line between familiar and innovative, as well as informative and overwhelming. Depending on their core audience (is it alternative-meat-seekers or open-minded-veggie-lovers?), the right tone will also go a long way. Humor worked for Impossible Foods\u2014at the very least, friendly warmth should be utilized here.\u201d<\/p>\n There\u2019s a lot of work ahead for brands like Good Meat. Still, if the popularity of plant-based alternatives to milk, cheese, burgers, chicken nuggets, and even bacon is any indication, we\u2019ll be talking a lot about lab-grown steak branding soon enough.<\/p>\n
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