Analysis of the danger of cultured meat

Introduction. Synthetic food products, including cultured meat, promise many benefits but require the careful assessment of the safety before mass introduction. The potential health risks associated with the consumption of cultured meat may vary among different populations. Identifying target consumer groups will allow individual risk factors being taken into account and appropriate precautions developing.

The aim of the study was to analyse the hazards of cultured meat and predict the groups of potential consumers for targeted information on adverse effects from its consumption

Materials and methods. A systematic analysis of scientific literature and a sociological study among four hundred twenty three residents of the Perm region (February-August 2023) were conducted. The data were processed using SPSS for Windows 21.0.

Results. Potential hazards in the consumption of cultured meat are related to the presence of chemical contaminants, possible immune system hypersensitivity and changes in the biological value of protein. The study showed that different age groups have varying degrees of vulnerability to these hazards. More than 45% of the respondents are willing to consume cultured meat, especially young people. About 22% of the respondents are willing to include cultured meat in the diet of children, making them the most vulnerable. Willingness to consume cultured meat increases with positive social influence (addressing agricultural, environmental, and biological issues).

Limitations. Only residents of Perm Krai are represented among the respondents who participated in the survey.

Conclusion. The results of the study emphasise the need to inform target groups about the risks associated with cultured meat, taking into account age-specific and individual risk factors. The findings may form the basis for recommendations to ensure the safety of cultured meat before consumption.

Compliance with ethical standards. A favourable opinion of the local ethical committee was obtained for the sociological study. Minutes of the meeting of the Local Ethics Committee No. 2 dated February, 10, 2022. All participants gave informed voluntary written consent to participate in the study.

Contribution:
Shur P.Z., Barg A.O., Suvorov D.V. – concept and design of research, data collection and processing, writing text;
Zelenkin S.E., Lir D.N. – data collection and processing, writing text.
All co-authors – editing, approval of the final version of the article, responsibility for the integrity of all parts of the article.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgement. The study had no sponsorship.

Received: August 8, 2024 / Revised: September 9, 2024 / Accepted: November 19, 2024 / Published: December 17, 2024