Beyond Belief

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Religion & Ethics

Series exploring the place and nature of faith in today's world

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Beyond Belief: Stem Cell Steaks and the Scriptures

Stem Cell Steaks and the Scriptures

BBC Radio 4 - Beyond Belief, Stem Cell Steaks and the Scriptures

The CEO of a lab-grown meat company describes the place of his Jewish faith in his work.

How does faith inform the work of the Jewish CEO of a lab-grown meat company? And a panel of farmers, all religious, share their perspective on the future of food production.

Is cultured or cultivated meat, grown from animal stem cells, kosher or halal? 

That's what some religious leaders and scholars are starting to consider as we search for more sustainable solutions to feeding the world. Didier Toubia is the CEO of Aleph Farms, one company in Israel that has sought religious approval for its steak, grown from the stem cells of a black angus cow. They have also submitted an application to the Food Standards Authority in the hopes of bringing their products to the UK. 

A written ruling by the Chief Rabbi of Israel declared that their lab-grown meat could be considered Kosher. Aleem Maqbool has questions, and is joined by a panel of livestock farmers to discuss the relationship between faith, farming and the future of meat. 

Dr Lutfi Radwan is from Willowbrook Farm in Oxfordshire, which claims to be the first halal and tayib farm in the UK, Bridget Down is a Methodist preacher and famer in Devon and Achyuta Masoumi is from Bhaktivendanta Manor near Watford, an estate and Hare Krishna temple which includes a cow sanctuary.

Producer: Rebecca Maxted
Assistant Producer: Ruth Purser

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