Cellular Agriculture: Chapter 26, Cellular agriculture and public health, nutrition, and food security

The integration of cellular agriculture into food systems promises to create a more environmentally sustainable food system and to lessen the global consumption of animal-derived products. Public health would benefit from decreasing rates of zoonotic and foodborne diseases, as well as the mitigation of antimicrobial resistance. Cellular agriculture could improve human nutrition through the development of novel nutrient profiles. This technology permits the manipulation of the products' fat and protein compositions, developing potentially ideal formulas for human nutrition. Cellular agriculture can contribute to increasing the safety, stability, and sustainability of animal-derived protein products, as well as improving other dimensions of food security. Realization of these benefits will depend on the policies and regulations put in place to guide the development of this new industry. Efforts focused on improving cellular agriculture's potential outcomes for public health, nutrition, and food security should be informed by available data and increased public engagement.