A burger made in a lab could "kill" the European Union, according to a report.
Cultivated in a Petri dish from animal cells, this type of meat is "so divisive" it "doesn't even have an agreed-upon name", said Politico, and is the subject of a "fight" at "the heart of the European project".
Lab meat is grown from the cells of animals in steel tanks. Though it's known in the industry as cultivated meat, it's "sometimes called cultured meat, lab-grown meat or cell-based meat", said Associated Press.
With the politics of agriculture in a "particularly febrile state", this form of meat has become "the target of an almighty backlash", added Politico. It has "tweaked a raw nerve" in European agriculture because critics say it threatens the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) – a "bountiful" subsidy program that "doles out" €45 billion a year in income support to farmers.
Plant-based meats and drinks are already "whittling bits off" the CAP as they "progressively trim" the sales of animal meat and dairy. Farmers' unions warn that if lab-grown meat takes "another slice" the CAP would either have to "fatten its budget", which would be "politically unfeasible", or "watch livestock farms cease to be financially viable, radically transforming Europe's hinterlands", which would be "politically unpopular".
According to a note that 12 governments submitted to the Council of the European Union earlier this year, farming funds are so pivotal to European unity that if you break the CAP you "might just break the EU". | 
