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Behind the Hype of 'Lab-Grown' Meat (gizmodo.com)
In an exclusive report via Gizmodo, Ryan F. Mandelbaum discusses the hype surrounding "lab-grown" meat: Some folks have big plans for your future. They want you -- a burger-eatin', chicken-finger-dippin' American -- to buy their burgers and nuggets grown from stem cells. One day, meat eaters and vegans might even share their hypothetical burger. That burger will be delicious, environmentally friendly, and be indistinguishable from a regular burger. And they assure you the meat will be real meat, just not ground from slaughtered animals. That future is on the minds of a cadre of Silicon Valley startup founders and at least one nonprofit in the world of cultured meat. Some are sure it will heal the environmental woes caused by American agriculture while protecting the welfare of farm animals. But these future foods' promises are hypothetical, with many claims based on a futurist optimism in line with Silicon Valley's startup culture. Cultured meat is still in its research and development phase and must overcome massive hurdles before hitting market. A consumer-ready product does not yet exist and its progress is heavily shrouded by intellectual property claims and sensationalist press. Today, cultured meat is a lot of hype and no consumer product.
"Much of what happens in the world of cultured meat is done for the sake of PR," Ben Wurgaft, an MIT-based post-doctoral researcher writing a book on cultured meat, told Gizmodo. Wurgaft finds it hard to believe many predictions about cultured meat's future, including the promise of an FDA-approved consumer product within a year. The truth is that only a few successful prototypes have yet been shown to the public, including a NASA-funded goldfish-based protein in the early 2000s, and a steak grown from frog cells in 2003 for an art exhibit. More have come recently: Mark Post unveiled a $330,000 cultured burger in 2013, startup Memphis Meats has produced cultured meatballs and poultry last and this year, and Hampton Creek plans to have a product reveal dinner by the end of the year.
"Much of what happens in the world of cultured meat is done for the sake of PR," Ben Wurgaft, an MIT-based post-doctoral researcher writing a book on cultured meat, told Gizmodo. Wurgaft finds it hard to believe many predictions about cultured meat's future, including the promise of an FDA-approved consumer product within a year. The truth is that only a few successful prototypes have yet been shown to the public, including a NASA-funded goldfish-based protein in the early 2000s, and a steak grown from frog cells in 2003 for an art exhibit. More have come recently: Mark Post unveiled a $330,000 cultured burger in 2013, startup Memphis Meats has produced cultured meatballs and poultry last and this year, and Hampton Creek plans to have a product reveal dinner by the end of the year.
When have the initial versions of a product not been hard to produce, expensive and limited?
"I think there is a world market for maybe five computers"
Of course meat consumption is natural, or have you managed to change the dietary habits of some of the planet's apex predators? Try telling that to a shark. Make no mistake, your animal brothers would have no hesitation eating you given the right circumstances, and they *won't* treat you to a humane kill - they'll rip you to pieces.
Why do we have some teeth adapted to tearing meat?
Why do we have a gut that's ideal for an omnivorous diet?
I could go on. We're omnivores.
And, meat tastes great (that's "good"), and it has concentrated nutrients - many calories/protein/micronutrients in a small volume. Many vegetables taste great, too, and some have high-ish concentrations of nutrients - I like meat *and* veg, and enjoy both.
They sentenced me to twenty years of boredom
Meat animals are pretty well-rendered. Non-edible parts are sold for leather, fertiliser, fur/wool, animal feed (although potentially dangerous), decoration (horn buttons, bone handles), fat and bone for rendering, etc. They're too valuable to waste.
They sentenced me to twenty years of boredom
It is fairly trivial to prove meat is not necessary for a healthy or nutritional diet (e.g. vegetarians aren't particularly sick).
No, that is not fairly easy to "prove".
Vitamin B12, for example, is only sourced from animals. Vegetarians who care about their health tend to buy supplements or fortified foods, closing their eyes to the source.
Similar for vitamin D, and to a lesser degree, vitamin A.
Then there's the risk of iron or amino acid deficiency; pick one. The problem here is that the plants high in amino acids like nuts and legumes also inhibit iron absorption. So to get enough of both, you need to flip back and forth between vegetarian foods that provide iron and provide proteins, but not at the same time.
Then there's the added risk of diabetes 2. When adjusted for overall lifestyle, vegetarians do eat a more carb rich diet. (The important here is "when adjusted for overall lifestyle" - overall, vegetarians have a lessened risk, but that's not due to the diet, but other lifestyle choices. But if you look at random people with the same calorie intake, alcohol intake and exercise level, the vegetarian is at higher risk.)
A quick google showed me:
- 50% of vegetarians and 80% of vegans have vitamin B12 deficiency
- Vegetarians face a 40% higher risk of colorectal cancer
- Vegetarians on average have a 5% lower bone-mineral density
So, good luck with your fairly trivial proof.
Unless vegans take the consequence of their choice by filing down their canines and premolars, I'm not sure they really believe in it.
A consumer-ready product does not yet exist and its progress is heavily shrouded by intellectual property claims...
I'm sure RMS disapproves of proprietary wetware as much as he disapproves of proprietary software. Let's start an Open Meat movement. LibreChicken, anyone? How about Moo-nix? OpenBSE?
'The Economy' is a giant Ponzi scheme whose most pitiable suckers are the youngest among us and the yet-unborn.
It seems to me they are going after the wrong market. The first lab-grown (excuse me, "cultured") meat should be sushi-grade Ahi tuna. Tuna is expensive, over-fished, potentially mercury-laden, and it already looks like it came out of a vat. And people already eat imitation-crab in their California rolls anyway.