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Slashdot Asks: Would You Eat Lab-Grown Meat? (dmarge.com)

An anonymous reader writes from a report via WIRED: Lab-grown meat appears to be coming to a supermarket near you whether you like it or not. Granted, you have some time before that becomes a reality. Scientists in Belgium and the United States are working on cultured meat substitutes that taste like real meat and cost less than real meat, but don't use as many environmental resources as meat from animals, nor does it involve the slaughtering of animals. They predict such meat substitutes will cost a lot less by the year 2020 when the efficiency of bulk production kicks in. According to a 2014 Pew poll, only 20 percent of Americans would be willing to try cultured meat, while a 2013 survey in Belgium revealed that just 13 percent of 180 subjects knew what cultured meat was. Also, vegetarians surveyed perceived man-made meat to be unhealthy and unfavorable. However, once respondents were told how the meat is grown, most said they might try it. When educated about the environmental benefits, the number of people who were willing to try it nearly doubled. A poll from The Vegan Scholar found that lab-grown meat was much more appealing to vegetarians than to vegans. Similar Reddit and SurveyMonkey polls have come to similar conclusions, but it's important to note that none of these polls were peer-reviewed. Researchers have suggested that the media greatly overestimates the importance of vegetarian and vegan opinions on lab-grown meat. Given the lack of large surveys determining the public's opinion on lab-grown meat, we thought we would pose the question to Slashdotters: Would you eat lab-grown meat?

4 of 351 comments (clear)

  1. yes by turkeydance · · Score: 4, Funny

    with soylent

  2. Better Off Ted by fahrbot-bot · · Score: 5, Funny
    Phil and Lem grew meat in the lab in Season 1, Episode 2, "Heroes". From some of the better quotes
    • Jerome [tasting meat made in lab]: It tastes familiar.
    • Ted: Beef?
    • Jerome: No.
    • Linda: Chicken? We'll take chicken.
    • Ted: What does it taste like?
    • Jerome: Despair.
    • Ted: Is it possible it just needs salt?
    --
    It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
  3. Re:I'd like to try by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Travel to Japan

    I think they even let you pick your whale out of the tank.

  4. Re:Cheaper ??? by Crashmarik · · Score: 1, Funny

    Advanced ?

    In 76 I had a Lincoln Continental Mark, in 78 I had a Corvette Anniversary edition.

    I doubt I could buy any car made today that had the crashworthyness of the Lincoln. To get the performance of the Vette would cost me 6 times what that car went for.

    Good job not understanding what the word performance means.