Cellular Agriculture and the Role of Farmers

Background

The future of agriculture is at a crossroads. As Europe strives to meet its Green Deal objectives and ensure food security in the face of climate change, the need for innovative, sustainable protein sources becomes ever more urgent. 

Cellular agriculture—the production of animal products directly from cells rather than whole animals—has emerged as a promising solution.

Yet, questions remain: What role will farmers play in this new food system? Can cellular agriculture empower rather than displace them?

Focus of the Event

This high-level event will explore how cultivated meat can be integrated into rural economies, with farmers as active participants in the production process.

At the heart of the discussion is RESPECTfarms, a pioneering European initiative that aims to develop farm-based cultivated meat production. This project envisions a future in which farmers produce meat without raising or slaughtering animals, while continuing their role as food producers and stewards of the land.

The event is designed to provide policymakers—particularly Members of the European Parliament—with a clearer understanding of the opportunities and challenges cellular agriculture poses, as well as its potential to support a just transition for farmers.

Speakers and Participants

• MEP Sigrid Friis, Renew Europe.
• MEP Tilly Metz, Greens/EFA.
• MEP Niels Fuglsang, S&D.
• Ina Paitjan, Legal Researcher, GAIA.
• Reineke Hameleers, CEO of Eurogroup For Animals.
• Ira van Eelen, Co-Founder of KindEarth.
• Annelies Bogaerts, CEO of Fishway 
• Mark Post, Chief Scientific Officer of Mosa Meat.
• Ruud Zanders, A participating farmer from the RESPECTfarms project.

Why This Matters for the European Parliament

• Policy relevance: As the EU develops frameworks around sustainable food systems, cellular agriculture is likely to become part of future strategies and legislation.
• Farmer inclusion: RESPECTfarms provides a compelling model for ensuring that farmers are not left behind in the protein transition.
• Ethical leadership: Supporting technologies that reduce animal suffering while maintaining food sovereignty aligns with core European values.

Invitation to Attend

We warmly invite you to attend this event (which will be livestreamed on this page) and contribute to the dialogue on how Europe can support an agricultural future that is sustainable, innovative, and inclusive.

Your participation will be instrumental in shaping a well-informed and forward-thinking policy debate on cellular agriculture.

It is a vision of the possible future of cellular agriculture to produce meat at farms using cells and not animals.

The film above from RESPECTfarms serves to promote research in this field and communication between policy makers, researchers, and farmers to create more understanding of alternative production methods within cellular agriculture.

Session 1 – 4-4.40pm – Introduction by Philip Herd, The Brussels Times Editor-in-Chief

MEP Tilly Metz (host)

MEP Niels Fuglsang

Ina Paitjan

Annelies Bogaerts

Mark Post

Session 2 – 4.45-5.25pm – Introduction by Philip Herd, The Brussels Times Editor-in-Chief

MEP Tilly Metz (host)

MEP Sigrid Friis

Reineke Hameleers

Ira van Eelen

Ruud Zanders

5.25pm – Event summary by Philip Herd, The Brussels Times Editor-in-Chief

5.30pm – End

Organised by The Brussels Times with the kind support of GAIA