The Public Health Perspective of Cell-Cultivated Meat Technology in Mitigating Antimicrobial Resistance

Wenjia Song

doi:10.54097/x9w9k280

Authors

Wenjia Song

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54097/x9w9k280

Keywords:

Cell-Cultivated Meat, Antimicrobial Resistance, Antibiotic Misuse in Animal Husbandry, Transmission of Drug-resistant Bacteria, Public Health.

Abstract

The abuse of antibiotics in animal husbandry leads to the widespread diffusion of antibiotic-resistant bacteria through food chains, environmental contamination, and occupational exposure, exacerbating global public health challenges. According to World Health Organization forecast, antimicrobial resistance could cause 10 million annual deaths by 2050 if left uncontrolled. Cell-cultivated meat (CM) technology has achieved antibiotic-free meat production through closed-system bioreactors, developments in serum-free culture medium, and germless control protocols. However, current researches predominantly focuse on nutritional optimization and environmental impact assessments of cultured meat, while systematic investigations into its potential for reducing antimicrobial resistance transmission are obviously insufficient. This study analyses the CM technology's potential to interrupt antibiotic usage chains at their source. By avoiding pollution pathways in traditional meat production, the industry has realized antibiotic-free manufacturing protocols. Nevertheless, technological promotion confronts many challenges including regulatory fragmentation, consumer skepticism, and economic viability constraints in low- to middle-income nations. The research's significance is providing new pathways for alternative protein technologies to fight against antimicrobial resistance, fostering synergistic development of sustainable food systems and public health infrastructure. In the future, it is necessary to optimize the cost of the culture medium and improve the taste to enhance the product's competitiveness. At the same time, we should strengthen interdisciplinary cooperation to coordinate the global regulatory framework, turing cultured meat from a laboratory innovation into a public commodity.

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