As Americans enjoyed barbecues on the Fourth of July, the science journal Nature published an article telling people to put down their burgers. Instead of beef, chicken, pork, and even seafood, the article suggested that humanity consider alternative proteins such as lab-grown meat, insects, fungi, genetically modified bacteria, and plant-based proteins—all in the name of sustainability and health.
Organizations such as the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the United Nations (UN) have been calling for a global reduction in meat consumption. Climate change alarmism and health claims are major drivers behind the push for alternative protein sources.
Yet many Americans are skeptical of the science behind the highly politicized and divisive climate change agenda. Recent scientific evidence has shown that a reduced meat diet may have little impact on major cardiometabolic outcomes and cancer mortality and incidence and that giving it up won’t save the Earth.
A recent survey of 1,500 U.S. voters conducted for Newsweek by Redfield and Wilton Strategies showed that the push for alternative proteins is not working. According to the survey, 81 percent of Americans still eat meat at least once a week.
The Alternative Protein Agenda
“To get on track by 2030, with full delivery by 2050,” the WEF published a whitepaper, “Meat: The Future, A Roadmap for Delivering 21st-Century Protein,” proposing the global transformation of the protein provision.
The WEF recommended the acceleration of the following alternative proteins:
- Meat replacements (e.g., plant burgers).
- Cultured/lab-grown.
- Insects.
- Alga-based.
- Fungi-based.
- Traditional processed plant-based (tofu, seitan, etc.).
- Traditional plant-based alternatives (peas, beans, nuts, jackfruit, etc.).
- Meat “extenders” (plant or other) as a partial substitute.
Insects, lab-grown meat, and factory-produced plant-based proteins have been pitched as viable solutions for reducing the environmental impact of food production, requiring less water and resulting in reduced waste. However, these alternative protein options still require land, building space, and equipment to produce. In addition, plant-based proteins often use crops such as corn and soy, which can deplete the soil of nutrients when not rotated and require processing to be converted into alternative protein sources.
Marie Reedell, the e-commerce and marketing director for Miller’s Bio Farm in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, told The Epoch Times that the pitch by Big Food lobbyists and environmental interest groups for lab-grown and plant-based proteins as a solution to improving the environment is shortsighted.
“There’s a lot of research saying that lab-grown meat and plant-based meat will save the world because it takes less water, less energy, and fewer resources. But the environmental impact of these products is really about where the process starts and ends, and their calculations start in the lab rather than from the ground up,” she said.
While mainstream media news headlines try to convince us that cows are killing the environment, local and family farmers working closely with the animals and land believe otherwise.
Regenerative Farming: A Sustainable Solution
Aaron Miller, a farmer and the owner of Miller’s Bio Farm, believes that farmers must invest in their land and animals. Otherwise, they risk unhealthy livestock, inferior products, and land degradation.
“I get so many calls from other farmers about doing the regenerative farming that we do. We feed our cows grass and hay, which makes them happy because they’re full and can thrive. We worked on our soil so that the cows were able to have healthy grass to graze on,” Mr. Miller told The Epoch Times.
Mr. Miller’s regenerative practices rebuild the quantity and quality of topsoil while also restoring biodiversity—benefiting not only his own farm but also other farmers who turn to him for the topsoil needed to produce vibrant crops.
Daniel Smucker, also a farmer with Miller’s Bio Farm, told The Epoch Times that the secret to true regenerative farming is responsible land and animal management. “Without animals, you can’t have a healthy environment. You can be destructive with animals on the land, or you can be regenerative—which all comes down to land management.
“Regenerative management means letting the soil grow and only having the animals graze on a particular part of the land for less than 20 percent of the time,” Mr. Smucker said.
When grazing space is alternated, the animals are able to eat the plants growing in the soil, excrete waste, and allow the ground to absorb the nutrients from the manure. It also allows the land to recover from the impact of the animals walking and feeding while topsoil forms and plants grow in the newly fertilized soil.
In conventional farming, regenerative agricultural practices are lacking, and livestock are not humanely raised or allowed to behave naturally, making it easy to demonize meat.
The War on Meat
The war on meat and farmers has become a divisive political issue. Notable figures, such as Bill Gates, Microsoft co-founder and the fourth wealthiest person in the world, have heavily invested in companies producing alternative protein solutions for human consumption. These companies include Impossible Foods, Beyond Meats, and Memphis Meats.
The Epoch Times reported in 2021 that Bill Gates had acquired more than 242,000 acres of farmland across the United States, making him the largest private farmland owner in the country.
“People like Bill Gates are behind the push for more regulations over farmers,” Mr. Smucker said. “As Robert F. Kennedy Jr. explained, the people behind Big Pharma and Big Government are in charge of the products they are supposed to be regulating. They not only make money from the products they produce, but also the medications people will need to take as a result of consuming their products.”
With the growing conflicts of interest in the food industry, it’s become more important than ever to investigate our food sources and their practices to ensure that what we eat is both safe and nutritious.
‘Greenwashing’ Alternative Proteins
While the consumption of insects is promoted as a cost-effective source of protein and a potential prebiotic, many Americans are just not there.
Bestselling author Jonny Bowden, a functional nutritionist with a doctorate in holistic nutrition, told The Epoch Times, “People have been eating insects since we were cavemen. A lot of the pushback surrounding eating insects comes from socialization. It’s not really a nutritional issue. Many people think snails are gross, but others enjoy them for escargot.”
Other alternative protein options can be unhealthy and even toxic. For example, the New York Post recently reported that the factory producing the plant-based meat alternative Beyond Meat was found riddled with mold and bacteria.
Alternative proteins are far from being natural. Instead of ground meat containing one ingredient, plant-based meat products often contain many synthetic ingredients. While promoted as healthy due to being plant-based, these products are often “greenwashed” or “healthwashed,” making them appear healthy, yet often containing high amounts of hidden unhealthy or even toxic ingredients.
“Beyond Meat products have 18 to 21 ingredients. It’s not natural. Eat real food that your great-great-grandmother would have recognized,” said Mr. Bowden. “Think about foods that you could have hunted, gathered, fished, or plucked. If a food fits into one of those categories, it is probably good for you.”
The Epoch Times reached out to Beyond Meat for comment and has not yet received a response.