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August 24, 2026
Algae grown from cultivated meat's own waste could cut its costs 90%

Vegan Brief August 24, 2026

Cultivated meat's waste cuts its costs, vegan diets cut cancer risk

University of Queensland researchers found that feeding cultivated meat's own waste to microalgae, then back into production, could cut growth-media costs by 60-90%, tackling the industry's biggest cost barrier.

4 top stories 16 sources read 105 articles scanned 6 sides of vegan life
Lead story Algae grown from cultivated meat's own waste could cut its costs 90% Read the story

The Quick List

University of Queensland researchers found that feeding cultivated meat's own waste to microalgae, then back into production, could cut growth-media costs by 60-90%, tackling the industry's biggest cost barrier [72].
A meta-analysis of 19 cohort and case-control studies found vegetarians have 13% lower total cancer risk and vegans 23% lower, than non-vegetarians [11].
A controlled crossover trial found a whole-food, plant-based diet cut LDL cholesterol 17.9% more than a standard American diet in adults with a genetic cholesterol disorder [6].
ADM won $2.23 million in Iowa tax credits to convert part of its Clinton plant into a precision-fermentation hub that will produce Every Co.'s animal-free egg protein at commercial scale next year [73].
EEG recordings show dogs produce a human-like theta-wave brain signature during self-control tasks, a new physiological marker for canine cognitive control [81].
The movement today▲Every company egg protein scale▲Innovation▲Research & NutritionThe storylines →
Algae grown from cultivated meat's own waste could cut its costs 90%Photo: green queen
Innovation

Algae grown from cultivated meat's own waste could cut its costs 90%

Read the story →
Also on the board3 more signals
Meta-analysis finds vegetarian and vegan diets cut total cancer riskWikimedia Commons / Broccoli
Research & Nutrition

Meta-analysis finds vegetarian and vegan diets cut total cancer risk

 Crossover trial cuts LDL cholesterol 17.9% with a plant-based dietWikimedia Commons / Lentil
Research & Nutrition

Crossover trial cuts LDL cholesterol 17.9% with a plant-based diet

 ADM wins $2.23M Iowa tax credit to scale Every Co.'s egg proteinPhoto: green queen
Innovation

ADM wins $2.23M Iowa tax credit to scale Every Co.'s egg protein

The Stories: the day’s biggest developments, in the sources’ own words

01▲InnovationStory

Algae grown from cultivated meat's own waste could cut its costs 90%

Algae grown from cultivated meat's own waste could cut its costs 90%
Photo: green queen
“From our calculations, we estimate we can reduce growth media costs somewhere between 60-90%,”
Melanie Oey, Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland · [72]
By the numbers
  • 60-90%estimated cut to cultivated meat growth-media costs by feeding waste-grown microalgae back into the production system [72]
  • 40%improvement in muscle cell growth from algal lysate that also offset a 50% cut in amino acids and animal serum [72]
FromGreen Queen
02▲Research & NutritionStory

Meta-analysis finds vegetarian and vegan diets cut total cancer risk

Meta-analysis finds vegetarian and vegan diets cut total cancer risk
Wikimedia Commons / Broccoli
By the numbers
  • 13%lower total cancer risk among vegetarians versus non-vegetarians, pooled across four studies (relative risk 0.87) [11]
  • 23%lower total cancer risk among vegans versus non-vegetarians, pooled across three studies (relative risk 0.77) [11]
  • 20%lower breast cancer risk among vegans versus non-vegetarians (relative risk 0.80, confidence interval 0.64 to 1.00) [11]
From(plant-based diet[tiab] OR vegan diet[tiab] OR vegans[tiab]) AND
03▲Research & NutritionStory

Crossover trial cuts LDL cholesterol 17.9% with a plant-based diet

Crossover trial cuts LDL cholesterol 17.9% with a plant-based diet
Wikimedia Commons / Lentil
By the numbers
  • 17.9%average LDL-cholesterol reduction on a whole-food, plant-based diet versus a standard American diet (95% CI: -21.7% to -14.3%) [6]
  • 4 weekson each fully controlled, isocaloric diet in the 50-person crossover trial of adults with familial hypercholesterolemia, a genetic disorder that accelerates atherosclerosis [6]
From(plant-based diet[tiab] OR vegan diet[tiab] OR vegans[tiab]) AND
04▲Every company egg protein scaleStory

ADM wins $2.23M Iowa tax credit to scale Every Co.'s egg protein

ADM wins $2.23M Iowa tax credit to scale Every Co.'s egg protein
Photo: green queen
“We're strengthening the global protein supply chain while demonstrating how ADM's industry-leading precision fermentation capabilities can complement existing production, expand supply and help customers innovate,”
Kris Lutt, ADM VP for innovation and growth · [73]
By the numbers
  • $2.23 millionin Iowa state tax credits toward a $55.5 million conversion of ADM's Clinton plant into a precision-fermentation hub [73]
  • 53 jobsexpected from the project, which scales Every Co.'s OvoPro animal-free egg protein [73]
WatchThe Clinton facility is expected to begin producing OvoPro at commercial scale next year [73]
The full timeline: Every company egg protein scale →
FromGreen Queen

Worth Knowing

Food & Recipes

  • Cook up Instant Pot apple butter: peel, core, and chop apples, pressure cook with brown sugar and spices, then blend and simmer to a caramelized fall spread [66].

Law & Policy

  • A UK-led Salmonella outbreak tied to imported eggs has sickened 207 people in Britain and hundreds more across six other countries, hospitalizing 34 and killing one [97].

Research & Nutrition

  • The FIBROVEG trial found a vegan Mediterranean diet cut LDL cholesterol 21.2 mg/dL more than a traditional Mediterranean diet in women with fibromyalgia, in six weeks [3].
  • A separate meta-analysis linked healthful plant-based diets to 23% lower liver cancer risk and 8% lower breast cancer risk per 10-unit increase in diet-quality score [9].
  • People in the highest tertile of healthful plant-based diet adherence had 21% lower dementia risk in a meta-analysis pooling five cohort studies [19].
  • Swapping red meat for plant-based meat lowered TMAO, a marker linked to cardiovascular risk, in a randomized crossover trial [13].
  • An eight-week vegan diet reduced white blood cell and lymphocyte counts compared to a meat-rich diet, suggesting anti-inflammatory effects even in healthy adults [20].
  • Researchers proposed "tandem" biological systems that convert CO2 into yeast single-cell protein, turning a carbon-emitting process into food and feed production [59].
  • The first systematic study of glucocorticoid residues in cultivated meat found hydrocortisone levels far below the safety limit set for milk [48].
  • A review of hybrid cultured meat, blending cultured animal cells with plant-based scaffolds, found it could cut the cultured-biomass burden per product while easing food-processing compatibility [50].
  • A four-university crossover study found no significant difference in 12-minute run times or strength gains between plant-based and omnivore diets in recreational athletes [17].

Activism & Animals

  • Dogs showed stronger behavioral responses to other dogs' vocalizations than to human or chimpanzee sounds, evidence of a dedicated conspecific-voice preference [96].

One Good Thing

Italian university students say they'd try cultured meat mainly because of familiarity, perceived safety, and animal welfare, not because of demographics or a taste for novelty [61]. It's a small survey, but it points at something real: the generation that will decide whether this food succeeds is already thinking about the animals first.

Instant Pot Apple Butter

Recipe of the day · Plant-Based on a Budget

Instant Pot Apple Butter

Instant Pot apple butter makes the process quicker and easier than ever, making a caramelized and delicious spiced spread in 1 hour – perfect with toast & for gifting!

65 min 4 servings 5 ingredients
See the ingredients
  • 5 pounds Fuji apples (peeled, cored, and chopped)
  • ⅔ cup brown sugar ((or coconut sugar, maple syrup, date syrup, or sugar-free brown sugar. Omit if preferred)
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
Get the full recipe at Plant-Based on a Budget →
Today in vegan history The Law That Saved Lab Dogs, Not Farm Animals August 24, 1966 A stolen Dalmatian and a magazine photo essay shamed Congress into policing research kennels, then lawmakers drew the line exactly at the farm gate. Read the day in vegan history →