"With a greater knowledge of what are called hormones, i.e. the chemical messengers in our blood, it will be possible to control growth. We shall escape the absurdity of growing a whole chicken in order to eat the breast or wing, by growing these parts separately under a suitable medium."

Winston Churchill's prediction from 1931 has been derided by historians. He thought the technology would develop within 50 years; in reality, it has taken closer to a century. Today, meat without animals is a real-life product on the cusp of widespread commercialisation.

The first product in this category, cultivated meat, was a burger exhibited to the world's media in London in 2012. In 2020, Singapore's government approved the first product for sale, a chicken nugget, and late last year the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a chicken product. The cost of the product has declined by 99 per cent since the first demonstration.



Markets have immense power to solve our societal challenges. Cultivated meat can alleviate issues associated with conventional meat, from environmental degradation to animal welfare, by providing consumers with an alternative. It can achieve all these goals without bans, taxes or vegan moralising. This follows how plastic replaced ivory, saving many elephants. Or how petroleum replaced whale oil, likely saving whales from extinction by providing a viable, affordable alternative.

My new IEA paper, 'Bangers & Cash: Cutting red tape to put Britain at the centre of the cultivated meat revolution', explores the potential of this technology. It focuses on how EU-derived red tape, contained within the novel food regulations, could prove a barrier to innovation.

The novel food regulations embody the precautionary principle approach, meaning it will take years and cost at least hundreds of thousands of pounds to get approval. The result could be European startups seeking approval elsewhere. The UK could become a hotbed of innovation if we use the opportunity provided by Brexit to now diverge from this approach. 

Food has been in a state of flux for centuries. We have found countless new ways to mix and combine ingredients, discovered new technologies and massively diversified our diets through trade and commerce. It is not unimaginable that, once again, what we eat will change.

Matthew Lesh
Head of Public Policy, Institute of Economic Affairs

BANGERS AND CASH

As Matthew mentioned, the IEA this week released his publication 'Bangers and Cash', which created quite the media splash.



On Wednesday, IEA Director of Communications Annabel Denham appeared on BBC Politics Live to discuss discrimination in the workplace, wealth taxes, levelling up and this new research. During the segment on Matthew's paper, Annabel debated a livestock farmer on the impact cultivated meat might have on traditional farming. Annabel explained that it would supplement, rather than replace, conventional meat it in the short-to-medium-term, and underscored the environmental, health and animal welfare benefits it could deliver.

Watch the full episode here.



Matthew also appeared on Times Radio to discuss his paper. Matthew described the regulatory barriers Britain faces, commenting:

"The regulatory environment that was designed over 25 years ago with a precautionary approach could potentially hold back cultivated meat innovation."

Matthew also recorded an explainer of his paper, which can be viewed on our YouTube channel here.

CAUGHT IN THE CAKE TIN

This week, Professor Susan Jebb, Chair of the Food Standards Agency, issued advice that offices should discourage employees from bringing in cake to share with co-workers, likening the practice to passive smoking. IEA Head of Lifestyle Economics Christopher Snowdon was quick to give his reaction.



Christopher pulled no punches on TalkTV, where he derided Professor Jebb's advice and described her as a 'horrendous nanny statist'.

Watch here.



In The Spectator, Christopher questioned the very existence of the Food Standards Agency. Characterising the body, he wrote:

"I can’t say I’m shocked to hear that she’s ended up in charge of a bloated, Blair-era government agency that never needed to be created in the first place and has long since deviated from its original purpose to become a soapbox for the paternalist elite."

OVER THE HILL?

On Wednesday, Office for National Statistics data revealed that headline inflation fell from a high of 11.1 per cent in November to 10.5 per cent in December. The reduction has left many wondering if we are now over the inflationary hill.



Responding to these figures, IEA Economics Fellow Julian Jessop said:

"There is still a good case for one final half-point hike in interest rates (to 4 per cent) to ram home the message that the Monetary Policy Committee is serious about getting inflation back down again to restore some credibility. But with monetary conditions already much tighter, and the full effect of last year’s rate increases yet to come through, the Bank may not have much more work to do."



In The Daily Express, IEA Press and Digital Officer Joseph Dinnage highlighted how the Bank of England's excessive money-printing during the Coronavirus pandemic contributed to our current high levels of inflation. He wrote:

"Hunt is right that exogenous shocks have contributed to high inflation across the world. However, there are two glaring omissions, the negligence of the government over the UK’s public finances and that of the central bank over our money supply."

iN THE MEDIA



Creeping socialism... IEA Head of Cultural Affairs Marc Glendening expressed concern this week that supposedly neutral state institutions are being weaponised by some on the Left. In an article for ConservativeHome, he wrote:

“Increasingly public sector agencies, including the police, are abandoning the self-denying ordinance necessary for a functioning liberal democracy. They are inflicting upon us – at our expense – politicalised advertising urging us to conform our opinions and behaviour."



National Health Disservice... On GB News, IEA Head of Political Economy Kristian Niemietz  discussed his 'Universal healthcare without the NHS: an alternative history' 1828 piece, in which he chronicles what British healthcare would like like had it been reformed. 

Watch the full interview here.



To pay or not to pay?... Continuing on the subject of healthcare reform, Matthew Lesh took part in a debate on self-pay healthcare for The Times. Supporting the practice, Matthew argued:

“The problem with “free” healthcare is that we don’t value it. People miss appointments without consequences and see doctors or visit A&E for minor ailments. Other people who truly need care feel guilt about being a nuisance. Co-payments could discourage no-shows and, since we would feel some of the cost of poor health, living needlessly unhealthy lives.”



Blunder down under... In The Spectator, IEA Senior Policy Advisor Sam Collins responded to the shock resignation of New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. He wrote:

"Many who know Jacinda consider her a genuinely nice person... But as she leaves the political stage, history will remember her time in office as evidence that one cannot govern with good intentions alone."

TEACHER SEMINAR 2023

On 8 February, we will be holding our 2023 Teacher Seminar with IEA Head of Education Dr Steve Davies. The topic will be 'Productivity and Secular Stagnation'. 

The event will run from 9:45am-3pm, with lunch provided – though those unavailable to attend in person are welcome to join online. While it is aimed at A-level Economics teachers, all are welcome! To find out more and reserve your place, please contact [email protected]. 



And a reminder that applications for our Future Thought Leader Programmes for sixth-formers and undergraduates are now open. There will be two weeks for sixth formers in April, and one in July. The undergraduate programmes will take place in July and August.

You can find out more information on the programmes and how to apply here.

IEA DIGITAL



Bitcoin explained... In this video, IEA Technology and Projects Manager Jamie Legg runs through the pros and cons of cryptocurrency and explores whether it coheres with Friedrich Hayek's vision for 'stateless money'.

Watch here.



IEA Podcast... In this week's Podcast, IEA Head of Public Policy Matthew Lesh speaks to author and Acton Institute Scholar Dr Samuel Gregg. They discuss free market capitalism's decline in popularity and Samuel's new book, 'The Next American Economy: Nation, State, and Markets in an Uncertain World'.

Dr Gregg's book can be bought here and the podcast can be viewed here.