Lab Grown Meat to be sold for first time

[_lost_username_]

So, it looks like price is now linked to scale. When production ramps up price will go down. In the next few years you're going to see cultured meat on supermarket shelves here. 

Livestock agriculture combined with growing global demand for meat has been one of the driving factors of climate change and deforestation. Eliminating a majority of livestock will result in cleaner water and air in many places as well as the chance for wildlife to return to its native areas. Just got to get past the tinfoil hat wearing anti-GMO crowd who wield a disproportional influence.

Quote

 

The “chicken bites”, produced by the US company Eat Just, have passed a safety review by the Singapore Food Agency and the approval could open the door to a future when all meat is produced without the killing of livestock, the company said.

Dozens of firms are developing cultivated chicken, beef and pork, with a view to slashing the impact of industrial livestock production on the climate and nature crises, as well as providing cleaner, drug-free and cruelty-free meat. Currently, about 130 million chickens are slaughtered every day for meat, and 4 million pigs. By weight, 60% of the mammals on earth are livestock, 36% are humans and only 4% are wild.

The cells for Eat Just’s product are grown in a 1,200-litre bioreactor and then combined with plant-based ingredients. Initial availability would be limited, the company said, and the bites would be sold in a restaurant in Singapore. The product would be significantly more expensive than conventional chicken until production was scaled up, but Eat Just said it would ultimately be cheaper.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/02/no-kill-lab-grown-meat-to-go-on-sale-for-first-time

Edited December 2, 2020 by ZoomBubba

[Raptorpat]

It's something that could very easily replace formless/ground meat products as long as taste and texture are consistent. 

Though my question, because I don't really know the process, is how much of those products are made with the "leftovers" on carcasses? Thinking along the lines of McNuggets and pink slime.

Because if those products are made with leftovers with have no other use and they need to slaughter for other purposes (like steaks or wings or whatever), my second thought is maybe there won't be as much financial incentive for existing producers to transition.

[Poof]

It has no soul whats the point of eating it?

[_lost_username_]

24 minutes ago, Raptorpat said:

It's something that could very easily replace formless/ground meat products as long as taste and texture are consistent. 

Though my question, because I don't really know the process, is how much of those products are made with the "leftovers" on carcasses? Thinking along the lines of McNuggets and pink slime.

Because if those products are made with leftovers with have no other use and they need to slaughter for other purposes (like steaks or wings or whatever), my second thought is maybe there won't be as much financial incentive for existing producers to transition.

From what I understand texture has been one of the primary focuses during its development. 

I figure that most people won't miss those leftovers if the quality meat is cheaper overall. If there is a demand, I don't see it being that difficult to manufacture pink slime or whatever you want to call it.

[Raptorpat]

There is certainly no consumer demand for pink slime, if you recall when that was a big thing in the news a decade ago.

But if producers are geared towards efficiently getting every last fleck of chicken or beef or whatever and masking it in cheap, formless food, it either comes down to a cost factor for production (and finding an alternative use for the remnants product) or competition against a superior product made with synthetic meat.

My thoughts though are all predicated on the near-term continued slaughter for other "formed" meat products because my presumption is that a cut of steak is harder to replicate than ground beef.

[_lost_username_]

18 minutes ago, Raptorpat said:

There is certainly no consumer demand for pink slime, if you recall when that was a big thing in the news a decade ago.

But if producers are geared towards efficiently getting every last fleck of chicken or beef or whatever and masking it in cheap, formless food, it either comes down to a cost factor for production (and finding an alternative use for the remnants product) or competition against a superior product made with synthetic meat.

My thoughts though are all predicated on the near-term continued slaughter for other "formed" meat products because my presumption is that a cut of steak is harder to replicate than ground beef.

They're close if not already there:

Quote

 

When it comes to making realistic lab-grown meat, one of the hardest things to replicate is not the taste, but the feel. In a new study, researchers created a spongy 3D scaffold out of soy protein that both scientists and tasters say made a clump of bovine cells feel like the real deal, Inside Science reports. Scientists have been able to grow “nuggets” of muscle cells to use for hamburgers and meatballs (above). But for this new study, they wanted to create something that felt more like a steak. So they seeded and grew three cell types—smooth muscle, endothelial cells, and satellite cells—a combination that gave the end product more meatlike texture properties than the scaffold alone, the researchers write in Nature Food. When three volunteers tasted the “steak,” they reported a good taste, aroma, and, most importantly, texture. The researchers say their new scaffold could help scale up the production of different types of cultured meats—and provide protein sources beyond animal agriculture.

 

https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/04/lab-grown-meat-starting-feel-real-deal

[_lost_username_]

I totally expect lobbying groups like the U.S. Cattlemen's Association to ramp up their misinformation campaign about cultured meat. Of course, I'm sure many red state politicians will follow their lead, but history is proven that the market eventually favors better technology that's hit a certain price level. 

[Raptorpat]

Expect a push for labelling, like the push to prevent products like soy milk from using the name "milk"

[Seight]

9 hours ago, Poof said:

It has no soul whats the point of eating it?

YES, I can't gain power from a beet!

[-Ninja_Jesus-]

Once they learn to lab grow wagyu beef hit me up

[_lost_username_]

8 hours ago, Raptorpat said:

Expect a push for labelling, like the push to prevent products like soy milk from using the name "milk"

They actually managed to accomplish something similar in my state. It's illegal to call any sort of vegetarian product with a meat referencing name.

I'd be happy to see most farms disappear. The poultry industry has taken advantage of the lack of regulation in this state so you have huge chicken houses popping up in residential areas and stinking up the place. When it comes to beef and other four legged food products, the amount of deforestation, wildlife killing and water pollution is atrocious. Just look at what they do for the beef and poultry industry when it comes to the Amazon. Fuck those farmers.