Jane Goodall To Tell Cultivated Protein Story In ‘Meat The Future’ Film

The story of the rising cultivated protein industry will be told by world-renowned conservationist Dr. Jane Goodall in the new documentary Meat The Future. The film, which chronicles the journey of cell-based chicken food tech Upside Foods, will also feature famous musician and animal activist Moby as executive producer.

Meat The Future, the movie documenting the journey of Upside Foods by award-winning filmmaker Liz Marshall, will be narrated by Jane Goodall and feature music from Moby, who is also joining as executive producer. The movie premiered in Canada at Hot Docs last year, and has since been acquired by London-based MetFilm Sales and has now been updated to include cell-based meat news developments and input from Moby and Goodall. 

Read more: We speak to ‘Meat The Future’ director Liz Marshall on the revolutionary promise of cell-based meat

Cell-based meat ‘proposes a way forward’

In a statement about narrating the documentary, which dives into the story of Upside Foods CEO Dr. Uma Valeti and the startup’s mission to grow slaughter-free sustainable meat directly from cells, Goodall said: “I’m excited about the documentary because it is solution-focused. The film proposes a way forward, to reduce methane, to reduce water and land use, to lessen the suffering of  animals, and to prevent future viral outbreaks.”

“I hope it sparks your imagination and inspires change,” the renowned primatologist added. Goodall has previously addressed the enormous environmental toll of animal agriculture, issuing multiple statements alongside other scientists to call for a shift towards plant-based diets and alternative protein sources to protect biodiversity and fight climate change.

Compared to traditionally farmed beef, cell-based beef is estimated to be able to reduce land use by 95% and reduce GHG emissions by up to 87%, when it reaches scale by 2030.

Over the course of Meat The Future, Goodall will be telling the story of how Valeti led the startup, formerly known as Memphis Meats, from creating the world’s first cultivated meatball at $18,000 per pound to debuting the first cultured chicken fillet and duck at half the cost earlier this year. 

Read more: Kate Winslet talks true cost of food in new climate documentary

‘Saving our only home’

Moby, who is joining as executive producer and will be providing the music for the documentary, shared that he is “very happy and proud” to be part of a film sharing the “remarkable development of cultivated meat, which can help us save the only home that we have in our fight against climate change.” 

The prolific DJ, producer and remixer is joining the film’s team of executive producers that include Kyle Vogt, the co-founder of Twitch, Chris Hegedus, the director of The War Room and Startup.com, and Janice Dawe of Sugar Coated fame. 

Speaking about the addition of Goodall and Moby, director Marshall said: “Over five years, our lens was situated at the forefront of a historic and hopeful movement of change. What the future holds for cultivated meat is unclear, but I believe its revolutionary journey into the world will stand the test of time.”

Lead image courtesy of Meat The Future Film.