If it was evolutionarily optimized, it most likely is not the most efficient way of doing something but it most certainly is the most resilient way.
Potato blight? soon to be available for: meat!
Potato blight? soon to be available for: meat!
Lab grown meat will have the same problem assuming the cells have little to no genetic diversity. Even if grown in a sterile environment, they could become susceptible to a blight-like organism (virus, bacteria, fungus, etc) once on grocery store shelves.
I know it isn't on quite the same scale as literally cloning the cells, but livestock isn't a very deep gene pool. Lots of selective breeding, by the same mindset that gave european nobility weak chins.
Removing the sentience from cows does reduce animal suffering, though I wonder if other things couldn't be done to preserve genetic diversity. Like maybe breeding oysters without ganglia, as they are barely alive to begin with. Farmed oysters are also better for the environment than wild ones.
For that purpose. Photosynthesis is horribly inefficient for any use other than making more plant.