Cultivated meat research should be funded

With avian flu spreading among mammals and experts concerned it could make the jump to humans, our political leaders should support increased federal funding for cultivated-meat research.

For those who don’t know, cultivated meat is grown from livestock cells, without slaughter. Since animals are removed from the process, this new protein would dramatically reduce our pandemic risk.

Though the Food and Drug Administration recently approved the first cultivated-meat product, and it should hit the market soon, more government money is needed for the protein to achieve price parity with slaughtered meat. Lowering the cost is crucial to encouraging widespread adoption of the product. Our legislators should support this effort, which has immense public-health benefits.

— Jon Hochschartner Granby, CT