The Promises and Challenges of Cell-Based Dairy: Assessing the Viability of Lab-Grown Milk as a Sustainable Alternative

Abstract

Conventional dairy farming contributes significantly to environmental issues including greenhouse gas emissions, water usage, land usage, and animal welfare concerns. At the same time, the rising global population is driving up demand for dairy products. Cell-based dairy, also known as lab-grown or cultured dairy, offers a promising solution by producing milk directly from cell cultures without the need for livestock. This technology has the potential to greatly reduce the environmental footprint of dairy production while meeting increasing dairy demands. This paper examines the possible benefits and current barriers to cell-based dairy becoming a widespread, viable, and sustainable alternative to conventional dairy farming. The potential benefits include up to a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, 90% less water usage, 99% less land usage, and the avoidance of animal suffering inherent in industrial dairy farming. However, significant obstacles remain in scaling up production to make lab-grown dairy price competitive with conventional dairy and gaining regulatory approval and consumer acceptance of a novel food technology. Life cycle assessment models demonstrate the reduced environmental impacts of cell-based dairy across metrics such as water, land, and emissions. Techno-economic analyses reveal challenges in achieving cost parity, estimating cell-cultured milk would currently cost 2-3 times more per gallon to produce. Consumer surveys show general willingness to try cell-based dairy products, but hesitation about regular substitution for conventional dairy. Additional R&D focused on bioprocessing efficiencies, policy support, and consumer education is still needed to fully realize the promise of lab-grown milk. If these challenges can be overcome, cell-based dairy could play a critical role in transitioning the dairy sector to a more sustainable system capable of providing nutritional, affordable dairy products to a growing global population.