Rev. William Melton Talks Cellular Agriculture
The Reverend William Melton is co-founder and president of the Compassion Consortium, an interfaith spiritual center for animal and environmental activists. The Consortium has monthly spiritual services on the fourth Sunday of each month, and other events, such as a December 7 book night, which will feature guests Dr. Joanne Kong, Gene Baur and Victoria Moran.
SLAUGHTER-FREE AMERICA: When and how did you first learn about cultivated meat?
WILLIAM MELTON: I follow vegan and animal rights news every day. I learned of this years ago in its infancy stages, back when I think it was called cellular or lab-grown meat.
SFA: How did you come to support cultivated meat?
WM: It is not entirely accurate to say that I ‘support’ cultivated meat. I have read much about it, but still don't fully understand the underlying technology. For me, the Compassion Consortium is focused on reducing, and hopefully someday eliminating, the torturing, abusing, harming, injuring, causing pain to, captivity of, using and/or slaughtering non-human animals for human purposes, whether food, fashion or so-called ‘fun.’
Based on my reading, my understanding is that cultivated meat does not involve any of these. If this is correct, I support it. If it is incorrect, then I don't.
SFA: Once cultivated meat is cheaper than and indistinguishable or superior in taste to slaughtered meat, what sort of impact might it have on traditional agriculture?
WM: The impact could be game-changing in terms of its positive impact on the environment and the elimination of the current treatment of non-human animals. Humans eat meat because they are addicted to it, they have been doing it all their lives and think it is normal, and they have never thought about the immorality of slaughtering and eating other living beings.
I know this because I was a carnivore until my mid-40s. Cultivated meat presents to humans the possibility of feeding their addiction without all the negative impacts on non-human animals and the environment. Three billion non-human animals are slaughtered every single day for human food, fashion and fun. Perhaps cultivated meat can be one of many paths to stopping this.
SFA: What would you say to animal activists who are opposed to cultivated meat?
WM: I don't know. If everything I describe above is true about cultivated meat, then I don't know why animal activists oppose it. However, they probably have some good reasons that I do not fully understand. So, I would simply start by asking why they oppose it, and try to understand their reasons. Maybe they would convince me that I am wrong.
SFA: Would you eat cultivated meat, or is it just something you want available for others?
WM: I don't think I would eat it. I view it as a great thing for carnivores who are addicted to the taste and texture of ‘real meat,’ so they can eat this without slaughtering other living beings. I am not so addicted. Also, I would assume that cultivated meat has all of the negative health aspects of ‘real meat,’ so I will stay away from it.
SFA: Do you think activists should expend energy and resources to help advance cellular agriculture, by pushing for government funding for cultivated-meat research and subsidies?
WM: I assume you are familiar with the USDA’s recent investment in cultivated meat. Ten million dollars is a pittance compared to the money the government pours into the animal agriculture industry. However, it is a start. Yes, if everything above regarding my understanding of cultivated meat is true, then I would support additional government research and development grants.