Cultivated meat has not yet reached European supermarket shelves, yet consumer opinion is already taking shape. No European country has granted regulatory approval, meaning attitudes are forming through messaging and media narrative rather than direct experience, according to reporting on a Euroconsumers survey.
Willingness to Try Remains Mixed
Around half of European consumers express willingness to try cultivated meat, with significant variation by country. In Spain, 56% of respondents said they would try it; in Portugal, 53%; in Italy, 47%; and in Belgium, 44%. Enthusiasm concentrates among consumers already reducing their meat intake. Still, around 43% of respondents who had not reduced meat consumption were also willing to try.
Taste and Price Set the Bar
Consumer expectations around product basics will shape purchasing. Nearly half of consumers said they would only buy cultivated meat if it had the same taste and structure as animal meat. Price matters equally. About 47% expected cultivated meat to be cheaper than conventional meat, and only 15% would consider buying it if it were more expensive.
Naturalness and Health Concerns Loom
Consumers frame cultivated meat as artificial and often link it to other processed foods in their minds. Many of the same concerns around processing and naturalness that affect attitudes to plant-based meat also show up in cultivated meat attitudes, according to Mintel Insights. Health anxiety runs deep. Just over half of consumers in the Euroconsumers survey worried about the long-term health risks of eating cultivated meat. Yet around 29% of those who said they would not try it would reconsider if it was good for their health.
Messaging Window Before Launch
The fact that cultivated meat has not reached market yet cuts both ways for producers. On one hand, brands must rely on messaging alone to win over consumers before trial becomes possible. On the other hand, brands have a window where the priority is consumer education and trust-building before launch, according to Mintel Insights. This gives them some control over the narrative, though the stakes are high: poor messaging could lock in skepticism before the product ever appears in stores.