In Episode #214, I sit down with Josh Tetrick to discuss reshaping our food system towards plant-based products and slaughter-free meat alternatives.
“We’ve created a food system that has made it remarkably easy to do unkind things.”
As animal-free proteins grow in popularity, technologies for creating them are too. Josh Tetrick wants to reshape our food system, and joins me today to share his journey with Eat Just. Josh is committed to facilitating innovation in the plant-based sphere and offers valuable insight into emerging technologies in today’s episode.
As CEO and co-founder of Eat Just, Josh Tetrick is right in the middle of the changing plant-based industry. He is a graduate of Cornell University and the University of Michigan Law School, and taught schoolchildren in Nigeria and South Africa as a Fulbright Scholar. He has been internationally recognised for his work with Eat Just, and is committed to building a healthier, safer, more sustainable food system.
“I want to live in a world with a lot less harm. I want to live in a world in which we don’t feel like we need to slaughter and abuse other animals just to have breakfast. I want to live in a different kind of world.”
In this episode, we discuss business as a force for change and the future of the animal-free industry. Josh shares some of his story, explaining where he found the drive to act and how he raised more than half a billion dollars. We look deeper into Eat Just’s products, specifically their very successful “Just Egg”. We also discuss the nutritional profile of cultivated meat and other plant-based alternatives; challenges Josh has overcome; and the benefits of alternative products.
Specifically, we cover:
- Intro [0:00]
- Josh’s Story [2:20]
- Having the Courage to Act [9:51]
- Evaluating the Meat Industry [20:12]
- The Mission of JUST [29:10]
- Negative Press & The Egg Industry [47:27]
- Cultivated Meat [1:10:30]
- Challenges & Pushback [1:36:24]
- Nutritional Profile [1:44:58]
- Skeptics & Timeline [1:48:32]
- Outro [2:05:47]
Cultivated meat and plant-based alternatives are certainly a space to watch. As conventional food systems grow unsustainably, companies like Eat Just are future-focused in their approach to feeding the world. Josh has vast, first-person knowledge in this sphere, and pulls back the curtain in today’s episode.
To connect with Josh, you can find him on Twitter or send him an email. You can also learn more about Eat Just at their website, and discover the future of cultivated meats at the Good Meat website.
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Enjoy, friends.
Simon
More about Josh Tetrick
Josh Tetrick is CEO & Co-Founder of Eat Just, Inc., a food technology company with a mission to build a healthier, safer and more sustainable food system in our lifetimes. The company’s expertise, from functionalizing plant proteins to culturing animal cells, is powered by a world-class team of scientists and chefs spanning more than a dozen research disciplines. Eat Just created America’s fastest-growing egg brand, which is made entirely of plants, and the world’s first-to-market meat made from animal cells instead of slaughtered livestock. Prior to founding Eat Just, Tetrick led a United Nations business initiative in Kenya and worked for both former President Clinton and Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. As Fulbright Scholar, Tetrick taught schoolchildren in Nigeria and South Africa and is a graduate of Cornell University and the University of Michigan Law School. Tetrick has been named one of Fast Company’s “Most Creative People in Business,” Inc.’s “35 Under 35” and Fortune’s “40 Under 40.” Eat Just has been recognized as one of Fast Company’s “Most Innovative Companies,” Entrepreneur’s “100 Brilliant Companies,” CNBC’s “Disruptor 50” and a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer.
