Massachusetts is gearing up to potentially make significant state investments in the alternative protein industry in coming years.
Both the House and Senate have approved the state’s ability to issue bonds to fund at least $10 million in grants over the next five years for researchers and businesses making milk and meat alternatives created from plants or cultivated in labs, rather than through raising and slaughtering livestock.
Now, as the Legislature works to finalize its economic development bond bill by the end of the month, food scientists and industry advocates say the likely new influx of money could help grow their blossoming industry. That growth, they say, could combat climate change, create high-paying jobs, and boost Massachusetts’ economic competitiveness.
“This is where we need to go,” said David L. Kaplan, director of the National Institute for Cellular Agriculture at Tufts University. “That will have a ripple effect throughout the country because [we’ll be] finding better, safer, more nutritious, healthier foods.”
It remains to be seen whether the industry’s grants, and the rest of the economic development bill, make it to Governor Maura Healey’s desk. Senate and House leaders are working to hammer out the differences between their proposals before their formal sessions end on July 31.
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The proposed grant programs mark the state’s first concerted effort to give a leg-up to the alternative protein industry, which aims to give consumers a similar taste, texture, and nutritional experience as that offered by traditional meat and dairy by using plants, cellular agriculture, or other scientific methods.
Massachusetts’ embrace of innovation in the alternative protein space stands in stark contrast to efforts in several states and a few countries to ban the sale of lab-grown meat, which is not yet on store shelves in the US. In a May press release announcing Florida’s ban, Governor Ron DeSantis called it an effort to defend Florida from “the global elite’s plan to force the world to eat meat grown in a petri dish or bugs to achieve their authoritarian goals.” He added he wants to support Florida’s farmers and ranchers.
In Massachusetts, however, lawmakers have touted the industry’s potential to create jobs and capitalize on the state’s status as a hub for higher education, research, and biotechnology.
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“While there might be some states that are running away from it, I believe Massachusetts should lean into it,” said Senator Barry R. Finegold, an Andover Democrat who supported the effort to give alternative proteins their own grant programs. ”Not only is this good for our economy, good for the environment, but it’s also great for our health.”
To be sure, some meat and dairy producers have argued there’s no substitute for their products, which are governed by environmental and animal welfare regulations. They have previously asked federal officials to bar alternatives from calling themselves “milk” and “meat.”
Plant-based milk accounted for about 15 percent of milk sales nationwide last year, according to the US Department of Agriculture and the Good Food Institute, an advocacy group.
Noa Dalzell, state policy director at Food Solutions Action, an advocacy group, said support for this industry is not just in blue states. She cited strong efforts in North Carolina — a state that already threatens Massachusetts’ dominance in the biotech sector.
According to a report commissioned by Food Solutions Action, state investment in alternative protein creates six times more jobs per dollar than the average state expenditure.
While it’s a small fraction of the state’s multibillion-dollar bond bill, the $10 million set aside for alternative protein sets an important precedent, Dalzell said, adding it shows investors, companies, and entrepreneurs that Massachusetts views the sector as a key part of the future.
Animal agriculture accounts for roughly 15 percent of carbon emissions globally, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.
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Alternative protein advocates say their products offer a different way forward.
In Somerville, the company Tender Food uses a cotton candy machine-style device to spin plant materials into strands like the muscle fibers that comprise real meat. This allows their products to recreate a wide range of foods, from steak to pulled pork, rather than only ground products like burgers or meatballs.
Consumers are increasingly aware that what they eat impacts not only their health but also the environment — and are now making choices with that in mind, said Christophe Chantre, Tender’s cofounder and CEO.
But while there are lots of plant-based meat alternatives on the market, very few are affordable and enjoyable enough for consumers to purchase frequently, Chantre said. He hopes investments in the alternative protein industry will spur innovation to change that, echoing the shift in consumer attitudes toward electric vehicles.
“Electric cars for a long time were this fringe product, but when Tesla and others started to make cars that were actually faster, just really fast and really cool, then consumers are like, ‘OK, well, actually, this is something that I can buy,’” Chantre said.
Massachusetts was particularly receptive to the industry’s advocacy because the state is already home to universities and startups driving innovation in this sector, Dalzell said.
For example, the University of Massachusetts Amherst has a renowned food science department that has produced prize-winning research on alternative proteins. And Tufts University is also a leader, hosting both the university’s Center for Cellular Agriculture and the National Institute for Cellular Agriculture.
Kaplan, a Tufts biomedical engineering professor who also directs both the center and the institute, said the ideas and technologies used to develop what he calls “the future of food” come from tissue engineering — more commonly used to grow human tissue for medical purposes. His team also furthers the field of cellular agriculture, using animal cells to grow foods for eventual human consumption, though no such products are in stores yet. This process typically begins with cell samples taken from live animals, who are usually unharmed, according to the US Department of Agriculture.
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@eatscifi organized a wonderful tasting menu for us! Here’s a close-up of the SciFi burger and some initial reactions 👀👀 Squad review: #meaty #goodmouthfeel #juicy #solid #bussin #yum pic.twitter.com/UNEQ1XvQ5f
— Tufts University Center for Cell Ag (TUCCA) (@tuftscellag) August 17, 2023
Even with Massachusetts’ leading institutions, raising awareness among lawmakers about the industry was key to passing the legislation, Dalzell said. She has been meeting with legislators and setting up tastings of products and tours of facilities.
Food Solutions Action, alongside Finegold and Representative Jerald A. Parisella, hosted Protein Innovation Day at the State House last month. Companies brought samples for legislators to try, like Impossible meatballs and plant-based chicken made by Rebellyous Foods.
The state has already spent some money on this issue. MassVentures and MassTech, two state quasi-governmental agencies that will distribute the new grants, have a long history of working with alternative proteins, Dalzell said. But funding is usually earmarked specifically for sectors such as biotech and climate, and Chantre thinks this may hinder alternative protein companies’ chances of securing grants.
“I think we’re not considered because food is maybe insufficiently known within this field and all the benefits that could come from it,” Chantre said.
Now, advocates hope much of the $10 million cutout will go toward scaling up production and getting alternative proteins closer to consumers.
Stella Tannenbaum can be reached at stella.tannenbaum@globe.com.