Cultivated Meat and ‘Technological Solutionism’ |
Photograph Source: Missvain – CC BY 4.0
There’s a criticism which I see with some frequency in the animal-rights movement which argues those who view cultivated meat as means of reducing nonhuman suffering and premature death are engaged in technological solutionism. I’m sympathetic with the criticism to a certain extent, in that I don’t believe cultivated meat will end animal agriculture on its own. Still, I think accelerating the development of cellular agriculture has the potential to move us further in that direction than any other strategy currently available to us.
Specifically, I’d like those leveling the criticism to engage with what seems to me like a pretty clear historical record showing animal-exploitation industries are most often weakened through technological change, not activist pressure. My guess is there are countless examples of this phenomenon, but some of the most striking ones have been brought to my attention by the........