Fellow Braai Brus, errr, Climate Warriors,

๐ŸŒToday weโ€™re grabbing a drink with Brett Thompson, co-founder and CEO of Mzansi Meat, the African continentโ€™s first cellular agriculture startup.

Thanks for reading Climate Tech Cocktails ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

Brett has deep roots in ๐Ÿฆanimal advocacy and has worked in alternative protein for over a decade in ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฆSouth Africa and ๐Ÿ‡ฉ๐Ÿ‡ชGermany, focusing on using innovation to drive better food systems, specifically by cultivating quality meat without harming animals.

๐Ÿ“ป Listen to the episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, Audacy and Substack๐Ÿ‘‰

Thank you for your continued support. Weโ€™re grateful to have you with us, fighting the good fight with a cool beverage in hand.

โšก๏ธ New to CTC? Sign up here!๐Ÿ‘‰

๐Ÿ“ฒ Follow us on Twitter ๐Ÿ‘‰

๐Ÿ“  Show Notes Below๐Ÿ‘‡

๐ŸŽง New podcast episode:

Brett Thompson, co-founder and CEO of Mzansi Meat, on effective solutions in food systems:

โ€œI think there needs to be a bouquet of solutions. I donโ€™t think plant-based is the only solution; I donโ€™t think unprocessed, regenerative farming, any of those things alone are solutions  - rather I think you need to add a hell of a lot of things to it. And I think cultivated meat adds to that, because thereโ€™s not one silver bullet. People want to eat meat, and this provides an opportunityโ€ฆ Itโ€™s about how we innovate and improve that process.โ€

Brett and co-founder Tasneem Karodia started the cultivated meat industry in Africa by establishing the first company of its kind on the continent. They introduce a more efficient, sustainable and ethical means of creating animal protein products, and have started with beef. Their methods contribute to long-term food security for many, and their harm-free, biology-driven approach is already inspiring other companies to venture into production in the region, sparking a needed industry, and a climate-friendly change.

Find Brett on Twitter and Instagram: @BrettVThompson

Find Mzansi on twitter: @MzansiMeatCo

โ€ฆ and on LinkedIn

๐Ÿฅƒ What we drank during the episode: Diemersdal Estate Red Pinotage (Brett), and Kahlua with Coffee (Matt)

Enjoy the show!

๐Ÿ“ป Listen to the episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, Audacy and Substack๐Ÿ‘‰

Interested in sponsoring?

Please reach out to m@climatetechcocktails.com

Companies/Startups mentioned during the show:

๐Ÿ”Discourse ZA

๐Ÿ”Credence Institute

๐Ÿ”Diemersdal Estate Wine

๐Ÿ”Shoprite

๐Ÿ”Spar

๐Ÿ”Fry Family Food

๐Ÿ”Pro Veg International

๐Ÿ”Upside

๐Ÿ”Good Food Institute

๐Ÿ”BioMilQ

๐Ÿ”USDA

๐Ÿ”FDA

๐Ÿ”BioCiti

๐Ÿ”Denovo Dairy

๐Ÿ”Yoco

People/places/things mentioned during the episode

๐Ÿง Cellular Agriculture

๐Ÿง Alternative Protein

๐Ÿง Animal Advocacy

๐Ÿง Cape Town, SA

๐Ÿง Franschhoek

๐Ÿง Stellenbosch

๐Ÿง Shark Cage Diving

๐Ÿง  Melanie Joy

๐Ÿง Nature Reserves

๐Ÿง Johannesburg

๐Ÿง  Elon Musk

๐Ÿง Motherโ€™s Day

๐Ÿง Madame Gandhi

๐Ÿง Applied Ethics

๐Ÿง David Benatar/Ethics of Humor

๐Ÿง BioEthics

๐Ÿง Durban

๐Ÿง Freediving

๐Ÿง Homelands

๐Ÿง Nigeria

๐Ÿง Kenya

๐Ÿง Egypt vs North Africa vs Subsaharan Africa

๐Ÿง Kruger National Park

๐Ÿง Crocodiles in Africaโ€™s Ecosystem

๐Ÿง Zambia

๐Ÿง Zimbabwe

๐Ÿง Mozambique

๐Ÿง English Common Law

๐Ÿง Nigerian Lamb Stew

๐Ÿง Braai

๐Ÿง Smiley

๐Ÿง District 9

๐Ÿง Nelson Mandela

๐Ÿง Afrikaans Language

๐Ÿง Potjie

๐Ÿง National Heritage Day

๐Ÿง Meat Free Mondays

๐Ÿง Primary Adult Stem Cells

๐Ÿง Woodstock Cape Town

๐Ÿง Bioreactor

๐Ÿง The Research Triangle

๐Ÿง Ryan Bethencourt

๐Ÿง The Netherlands

๐Ÿง Bio Innovation

๐Ÿง Stellenbosch University

๐Ÿง Michelle Egger

๐Ÿง Tammy Fry Kelly

๐Ÿง Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

๐Ÿง Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal by Ayn Rand

๐Ÿง Getting Things Done by David Allen

-TIMESTAMPS-

[0:00] Intro

[1:03] Drink of the Show

[3:20] Reasons People Should Visit South Africa

[5:25] Shout Outs to Some Rad Mothers and Cool Names

[8:02] Brettโ€™s Journey Into Animal Rights Advocacy

[11:08] Populations, Economies and Regional Laws in Africa

[20:29] African Food Culture and its Relationship with Meat

[22:45] Meat Cultureโ€™s Relationship to Economic Status and Public Health Data

[24:53] Braai and Potjie

[30:02] The Social Considerations of Abstaining from Meat

[33:13] Founding Mzansi Meat Co

[35:55] Cows on Mars

[37:23] How Cultivated Meat is Made

[44:05] Unique Advantages and Challenges to Mzansiโ€™s Location

[51:51] Breaking Ground for a Now-Emerging Market

[55:07] 3 Startups

[56:32] 3 Books

[57:41] Conclusion

Thanks for reading Climate Tech Cocktails ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

Next
Next

Project Two