VatGrown Burgers--Mmm Mmm Good
Tastes Just Like Chicken, erm. Beef, erm....
Okay, it's late but I just had to share this charming litte food article.
From Newswise ? Experiments for NASA space missions have shown that small amounts of edible meat can be created in a lab. But the technology that could grow chicken nuggets without the chicken, on a large scale, may not be just a science fiction fantasy.
In a paper in the June 29 issue of Tissue Engineering, a team of scientists, including University of Maryland doctoral student Jason Matheny, propose two new techniques of tissue engineering that may one day lead to affordable production of in vitro ? lab grown -- meat for human consumption. It is the first peer-reviewed discussion of the prospects for industrial production of cultured meat.
?There would be a lot of benefits from cultured meat,? says Matheny, who studies agricultural economics and public health. ?For one thing, you could control the nutrients. For example, most meats are high in the fatty acid Omega 6, which can cause high cholesterol and other health problems. With in vitro meat, you could replace that with Omega 3, which is a healthy fat.
?Cultured meat could also reduce the pollution that results from raising livestock, and you wouldn?t need the drugs that are used on animals raised for meat.?
Okay, question for everyone: Would you eat this stuff? Some things to consider:
--What if it was engineered to be much healthier than regular "on the hoof" meat?
--What if it was cheaper?
--What if it was more expensive?
--What if it meant that in the next 50 years, the only "meat on the hoof" in captivity in the US would be a few thousand head of happy, healthy stock animals, living a Norman-Rockwellish kind of life? Would that erase any current objections to eating meat by present-day ethical vegetarians?
--What about those who limit meat consumption based on religion? Would vatgrown pork be considered kosher/hallal? Since you don't "kill" vatgrown meat, how would it be categorized under the kosher/hallal systems?
--What if it tasted just like meat but had that funky vat-soy texture? Would you still eat it?
--If you could buy a "starter kit" and grow it at home as opposed to buying it from a Giant Vat Farm, would you?
Contemplate that whilst I shower before bed...and keep an eye out for posts from DC from Gilly...good night...
posted by Jenonymous @ 10:30:00 PM
