'New Bill Gates': MrBeast faces flak for promoting genetically-grown chicken meat in a $200 million lab
YouTuber and content creator MrBeast is facing heavy social media flak for promoting the consumption of genetically-grown chicken meat in a $200 million lab. The initiative drew criticism from his followers who labelled him as the 'new Bill Gates ', condemning the scientific and environmental framing of the venture.
MrBeast's video
Born as Jimmy Donaldson, the influencer enjoys 463M subscribers online and is one of the most followed creators in the world. In his most recent video titled '$1 vs $1,000,000,000 Futuristic Tech!' he compared numerous technologies of varied cost.
In one of the segments of the clip he visited a $200 million lab from Upside Foods which has produced 'hundreds of thousands of pounds of chicken meat without killing a single chicken'.
One of the representatives of the labs explained the process to the YouTuber, "When we took cells from a chicken egg in 2018, we froze them at -80 degrees. We take those cells and gently thaw them out." They add protein, fat and sugar to feed the meat and the chicken is formed later.
MrBeast also tasted the resulting chicken by having a chef make burgers out of real and lab-grown chicken and tasting them together. "I honestly can't tell the difference," said the 27-year-old creator, adding how the technology could "save the lives of trillions of chickens and animals" in the future.
Considering he is one of the most followed and loved content creators online, backlash for MrBeast is relatively scarce. However, his latest video has enraged everyone from chicken lovers to scientific experts.
"What is the benefit of not eating chicken? Why do we want trillions of additional chickens running around? The entire point is to harvest them and eat them," claimed one.
"Saving billions of animals will cost us trillions of dollars...Real chicken sandwich cost: $5 Cultivated chicken sandwich cost: $50," added another.
"His villain arc has begun. The new Bill Gates," one claimed on X.
"How many cancers will this cause in 10 yrs?" questioned another.
"Ahh yes and this reminds us of who he works for" added many others claiming the YouTuber was part of a larger program to target children and consumers.
The future of chicken meat
Cultivated meat is produced by taking animal cells and growing them in controlled environments, thereby eliminating traditional animal slaughter. In recent years, US agencies like the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) have granted clearances to companies like Upside Foods and Believer Meats to begin commercial sales of cultivated chicken.
Supporters of the invention propose it could reduce the environmental impact of livestock agriculture, decrease animal suffering and help meet global food demand. Critics are of the view that approvals don't guarantee food safety and such products may lack in nutritional, health and ethical aspects.
Additionally, he is being compared to billionaire Bill Gates, who is not only an investor in Upside Foods but also promoted the consumption of the company's products. "Put simply, there’s no way to produce enough meat for 9 billion people. Yet we can’t ask everyone to become vegetarians. We need more options for producing meat without depleting our resources,” he wrote in a blog post back in 2013.
People have been noticing the trend of the world's elite using their power to influence others, and promote technological and scientific fixes for human problems without any accountability.
While MrBeast might have promoted the product as a technological and environmental endeavour, according to critics his use of the power to shape public understanding of science and innovation should have been used wisely.
MrBeast's video
Born as Jimmy Donaldson, the influencer enjoys 463M subscribers online and is one of the most followed creators in the world. In his most recent video titled '$1 vs $1,000,000,000 Futuristic Tech!' he compared numerous technologies of varied cost.
In one of the segments of the clip he visited a $200 million lab from Upside Foods which has produced 'hundreds of thousands of pounds of chicken meat without killing a single chicken'.
One of the representatives of the labs explained the process to the YouTuber, "When we took cells from a chicken egg in 2018, we froze them at -80 degrees. We take those cells and gently thaw them out." They add protein, fat and sugar to feed the meat and the chicken is formed later.
MrBeast also tasted the resulting chicken by having a chef make burgers out of real and lab-grown chicken and tasting them together. "I honestly can't tell the difference," said the 27-year-old creator, adding how the technology could "save the lives of trillions of chickens and animals" in the future.
Considering he is one of the most followed and loved content creators online, backlash for MrBeast is relatively scarce. However, his latest video has enraged everyone from chicken lovers to scientific experts.
"What is the benefit of not eating chicken? Why do we want trillions of additional chickens running around? The entire point is to harvest them and eat them," claimed one.
"Saving billions of animals will cost us trillions of dollars...Real chicken sandwich cost: $5 Cultivated chicken sandwich cost: $50," added another.
"His villain arc has begun. The new Bill Gates," one claimed on X.
"How many cancers will this cause in 10 yrs?" questioned another.
"Ahh yes and this reminds us of who he works for" added many others claiming the YouTuber was part of a larger program to target children and consumers.
The future of chicken meat
Cultivated meat is produced by taking animal cells and growing them in controlled environments, thereby eliminating traditional animal slaughter. In recent years, US agencies like the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) have granted clearances to companies like Upside Foods and Believer Meats to begin commercial sales of cultivated chicken.
Supporters of the invention propose it could reduce the environmental impact of livestock agriculture, decrease animal suffering and help meet global food demand. Critics are of the view that approvals don't guarantee food safety and such products may lack in nutritional, health and ethical aspects.
Additionally, he is being compared to billionaire Bill Gates, who is not only an investor in Upside Foods but also promoted the consumption of the company's products. "Put simply, there’s no way to produce enough meat for 9 billion people. Yet we can’t ask everyone to become vegetarians. We need more options for producing meat without depleting our resources,” he wrote in a blog post back in 2013.
People have been noticing the trend of the world's elite using their power to influence others, and promote technological and scientific fixes for human problems without any accountability.
While MrBeast might have promoted the product as a technological and environmental endeavour, according to critics his use of the power to shape public understanding of science and innovation should have been used wisely.
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