A Diplomatic Chicken

The U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change called it a “transformative” approach to tackling climate change.

But in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, in November 2022, the dozens of ministers of state, dignitaries and media members from across the world who dined on GOOD Meat just said it tasted like chicken.

The fact that a golden Egyptian-made ramekin of grilled cultivated chicken served over aromatic rice, soy-glazed mushrooms and broccoli with chili and sesame seeds can be both is exactly what’s transformative.

Even though, according to National Public Radio, one-third of all greenhouse gas emissions come from food production, most attention in climate-change talks goes toward transportation. The Washington Post’s coverage of the annual climate conference, known as COP27, went as far as saying the world has collectively “neglected” to talk about our animal agriculture’s noxious contributions to our planet’s most cataclysmic crisis.

That changed this year as GOOD Meat showed the world what the future of our dining room tables could look like. In fact, for the first time, there were three food-focused pavilions in the delegate-only conference zone this year.

GOOD Meat is the world’s first cultivated meat approved for sale that’s made from cells instead of slaughtered animals. Singapore began allowing diners to enjoy slaughter-free meat in 2020. COP27 was the first time GOOD Meat was available anywhere in the world outside Singapore.

“The chicken that I ate in Sharm, with some delicious red lentil dahl soup and ‘poori’, was better than any chicken I remember eating in my teenage years,” Lottie Limb, a vegetarian for seven years and a reporter for Euronews, wrote.

In addition to the five intimate three-course dinners GOOD Meat hosted, Singapore Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu and other government officials hosted a larger event that showcased innovative food and beverage products originating from the Southeast Asian city state, including GOOD Meat.

“Food system change really did take center stage this year in a way it never has before,” Andrew Noyes, GOOD Meat’s vice president of global communications and public affairs, said.

And center stage has never tasted so good.