diff --git a/hack/local-up-cluster.sh b/hack/local-up-cluster.sh
index 4424f2b2f9a..ef29c6bfcf5 100755
--- a/hack/local-up-cluster.sh
+++ b/hack/local-up-cluster.sh
@@ -80,7 +80,7 @@ CLOUD_PROVIDER=${CLOUD_PROVIDER:-""}
 CLOUD_CONFIG=${CLOUD_CONFIG:-""}
 FEATURE_GATES=${FEATURE_GATES:-"AllAlpha=false"}
 STORAGE_BACKEND=${STORAGE_BACKEND:-"etcd3"}
-STORAGE_MEDIA_TYPE=${STORAGE_MEDIA_TYPE:-""}
+STORAGE_MEDIA_TYPE=${STORAGE_MEDIA_TYPE:-"application/vnd.kubernetes.protobuf"}
 # preserve etcd data. you also need to set ETCD_DIR.
 PRESERVE_ETCD="${PRESERVE_ETCD:-false}"