Cultured Meat is (not) Vegan Meat Discursive Boundary-Making in User Comments

The production of cultured meat is gaining regulatory approval in countries worldwide, with the global market being estimated to grow substantially over the next few years. However, its recognition as an effective technology in tackling issues concerning human health, the environment, and animal welfare has been received with mixed feelings across different countries. Given its defining principles, the issue is particularly relevant to the vegan community, which has embraced opposing perspectives on it. Based on these premises, the paper aims to explore the attitudes towards cultured meat within discussions of its vegan status in a corpus of YouTube comments posted in response to a documentary-style video. The analysis draws upon the analytical tools of Critical Discourse Studies, showing that cultured meat is predominantly accepted when veganism is framed primarily as an ethical commitment to reducing animal suffering, while it is rejected when vegan identity is grounded in health or dietary concerns, thereby contributing to the emergence of new ideological boundaries within the vegan community