Billionaire Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates recently stated that the U.S. and other wealthy nations should switch entirely to synthetic beef. Despite this belief, Gates himself has a particular fondness for cheeseburgers.
Breitbart News recently reported that during an interview with the MIT Technology Review, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates discussed his environmental impact efforts and various green initiatives aimed at reducing global carbon emissions. One suggestion Gates proposed was for wealthy and developed nations to move entirely to synthetic beef in efforts to reduce the carbon emissions from livestock.
Despite what seems like an outlandish proposal, Gates seems confident that meat alternatives will continue to grow in popularity in developed nations, stating: “Now the people like Memphis Meats who do it at a cellular level — I don’t know that that will ever be economical. But Impossible and Beyond have a road map, a quality road map, and a cost road map, that makes them totally competitive.”
However, despite Gates encouraging the U.S. to switch entirely to synthetic beef and disrupt a massive farming industry, he himself seems to be quite fond of traditional beef himself.
Joe Cerrell, a managing director of the Gates Foundation, told the Telegraph in 2016 that a meeting with Gates included “hotel rooms full of Diet Coke. And cheeseburgers for lunch, no matter who you are. If you get the lunchtime slot with Bill, you’re eating burgers. Someone will always be sent to get bags of McDonald’s. I don’t think Melinda lets him have them at home.”
Many were quick to note after Gates’ recent statements about synthetic beef that a photo of the billionaire waiting in line ad a Dick’s Drive-In in Seattle went viral across the web a few years ago.
Paul Rich, a Microsoft employee and principal program manager in Azure Security, took the photo of Gates and told GeekWire that he wasn’t surprised to see Gates there. “He ordered a cheeseburger, fries, and Coke,” Rich stated.
In 2011 during an event at the University of Washington, Gates told students that being a billionaire was often overrated and once again brought up his love of hamburgers.
“I can understand wanting to have millions of dollars, there’s a certain freedom, meaningful freedom, that comes with that,” Gates said. “But once you get much beyond that, I have to tell you, it’s the same hamburger. Dick’s has not raised their prices enough.”
Whether Gates himself has committed to switching entirely to a 100 percent synthetic beef diet is currently unknown.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan or contact via secure email at the address lucasnolan@protonmail.com
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