Pentagon slammed over plan to feed lab grown meat to soldiers in bid to reduce Army's carbon footprint

WASHINGTON, DC: Military personnel might soon discover lab-grown meat in their ration packs as Pentagon leaders explore options to lessen their environmental impact.

The bioengineering firm BioMADE proposed this initiative following a $500 million grant from the Defense Department aimed at shrinking its carbon footprint.

Lab-grown meat raises concerns

However, the Pentagon's initiative to introduce "cell-based meat" has been met with criticism from veterans who allege that the military leadership is using frontline soldiers as "lab rats."

"The military's job is forward defense, alliance, solidarity and deterrence, and that's it," stated Rob O'Neill, the former US Navy SEAL. "All that other stuff is crap. This is typical Washington DC nonsense movement."

Under the Biden Presidency, military chiefs have placed the battle against climate change high on their agenda, recognizing it as a "national security priority."

"It is a national security issue, and we must treat it as such," defense secretary Lloyd Austin said in 2021.

Officials have identified artificial meat as 'one of the most immediate, politically feasible, and high-impact methods,' as stated by the department's deputy assistant secretary, Matt Spence.

The consumption of lab-grown meat was legalized just last year, and veterans have cautioned that soldiers are weary of being utilized as test subjects for unproven technology.

US military is at its smallest size in 80 years

There's a large number of active reserve guard members who are still a little jaded from the COVID shot and are very unwilling to be part of the new experiment,' a former Navy Seal of 22 years, told the Daily Caller.

Over 8,400 servicemen and women have chosen to resign instead of receiving mandatory Covid-19 vaccinations, leading the Army to reduce its enlistment goal by 10,000 this year amidst the most significant recruitment crisis in decades.

The US military is now at its smallest size in 80 years, and veterans have expressed skepticism that the introduction of "nutrient-dense rations," as termed by BioMADE and produced through fermentation processes, will alleviate the situation.

"I think the government should focus on letting the military protect our nation from enemies, foreign and domestic, sometimes, but you know, that's what the military is there for," Former U.S. Special Forces member Martin Bailey stated.

"They're not there to be experimental lab-rats," Bailey added. "You know, why doesn't the government feed experimental meat product that, you don't even know what it is, why don't they feed that to, let's say, homeless people?"

He went on to say, "Well, there's a reason they don't, because that would be completely unethical. So why is it ethical to stick it down the throat of our military service members?"

National Cattlemen's Beef Association denounces plan as 'outrageous'

Marine Lt Col Stuart Scheller, who faced a court-martial for his criticisms of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, stated that the plan reflected a military that was misaligned in its priorities, according to Daily Mail.

"It appears that until new Defense Department leadership builds a winning force, service members will continue surviving off scraps," he added.

The National Cattlemen's Beef Association entered the fray last week as news of the plan emerged, denouncing it as "outrageous."

"American troops deserve to be served that same wholesome, natural meat and not ultra-processed, lab-grown protein that is cooked up in a chemical-filled bioreactor," said vice-president Ethan Lane.

"The Department of Defense is spending millions of taxpayer dollars to feed our heroes like lab rats," Lane remarked.

Eric Greitens criticized military's focus on winning wars and killing enemies

Former Missouri Governor and ex-Navy SEAL Eric Greitens described the concept as the "height of woke nonsense."

"The purpose of the military is to win our wars and to kill our enemies," he added. "It's such a stupid idea, that in any sane world it would be considered a joke."

He continued, "When you add woke nonsense like this to the debacle in Afghanistan, and the policy of kicking people out of the military for refusing the experimental COVID-19 vaccine, you begin to understand why the military is facing a massive recruiting crisis."

Research has identified the US military as the largest institutional contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions.

The Defense Department's emissions were estimated at 51 million tons of CO2 in 2021, equivalent to the amount produced by Sweden.

Last year, researchers asserted that the US military should pay at least $106 billion in reparations to nations affected by climate change. However, O'Neill mentioned that military chiefs might overlook America's most significant threats.

"They're wasting their time with nonsense," he said. "It's a shame that we're going to find out the hard way who our real enemies are, as we're, you know, don't think China, Russia and Iran are worried about lab-grown meat."

"They're worried about taking over the world. And we're not," he added.

Internet says 'Never mess with food'

As soon as Daily Mail published the news, readers started sharing their reactions in the comments section. One wrote, "This is just a way for the politicians who have stock in these companies to get them huge government contracts and have their stocks skyrocket."

Another user questioned, "How about the government feeding lab grown meat to all the elected government officials and Bill Gates? Experiment on them."

The third commentator added, "Never mess with food. Maybe they should look at making the Abrahams tank more more fuel efficient of other gas guzzling vehicles.

Messing with food will only end in disaster. The fact the military top brass believe in climate change is disturbing, wokeness creeping in."

"This is appalling. You want the armed forces to protect,defend and die for this country and you want to treat them like this. Try not taking expensive junkets. Target yourself first," stated a person.

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.