Got beef? Making meat - no harm, no fowl

Got beef? Making meat - no harm, no fowl

Allergies aside, the majority of vegetarians and vegans select their dietary lifestyle based on the assertion that rearing animals for slaughter is cruel, and / or the environmental impact mass farming of animals has on the planet.

While it's not a new perspective, vegetarians and vegans have never had as much choice for food than they enjoy today. In recent years there have been a growing cluster of tech companies developing meat-substitutes, aimed at offering "meat like" experiences without the guilt associated with supporting the traditional farming models. 

These endeavours have been largely made up of "plant-based" burger patties or chicken pieces, that have been engineered [with a lot of flavouring] to feel and taste like the real thing. The problem though is that these meat alternatives are not the real thing. The texture of the "meat" is instantly identifiable as non-animal and this affects the experience of enjoying a good burger, which is an issue if the goal is to turn meat-eater off their preferred protein source.

Even the "beyond" and "impossible" meat analogues fall well short, and with the later still facing issues with the US Food and Drug Administration - who are yet to have their safety concerns answered around an obscure soy protein used in their patties - it seems that while these plant-based solutions are heralded by some as the answer to the meat problem, those who enjoy the alternative aren't going to buy in.

So if plants are not the answer, what is? Well, it's meat of course! Staring us in the face the whole time. 

The growing of "cultured meat" - the process of growing meat cells in a laboratory using stem cells from a live host - is already being trialed by tech labs across the globe with their own strains of cultured meat products. These not only offer the meat-eaters a new take on the "real" thing, but should also serve to satisfy the fundamental issues of those opposing meat eating; If the animal host is still alive enjoying a free-range life, what is the difference between these animals and the keeping of domestic pets.

Then there are the impacts that "grown meat" could have on the wider landscape. One of the most controversial aspects of animal slaughter - the ritual slaughter of both the Jewish and Islamic faiths - have long been at odds with animal rights and welfare organisations. So what if the Kosher or Halal slaughter of an animal was not necessary. After all, in both cases the religious texts refer only to animals from a particular group [e.g. domestic fowl or those ruminants that have cloven hooves] having to be healthy prior to slaughter. If the animal is technically never slaughtered this would put the meat in one of two categories; either it should not be considered as "meat" as it is never slaughtered - and therefore surely permissible, or that the host animal being healthy satisfies the law up to slaughter, and that the "slaughter" - in this case the harvesting of the meat that has been grown - does not release any blood [where the halal and kosher laws have specific requirements] therefore the additional rituals are no longer needed.

As with many things involving ancient laws, these will be debated in the upper echelons of each faith; just last week the Jerusalem College of Technology hosted a conference to examine if lab-grown meat is Kosher. With entire cottage industries on the line, these debates and decisions are not likely to reach a swift conclusion.

Religious acceptance aside, there are still some issues to be worked out with lab-grown meat. Similar to the plant-based texture problem, while the cultured meat is set to bring the real flavour of actual meat, the structure has not yet been perfected. When meat grows on an animal it is attached to tendons and bones, it is stretched and strained, exercised and in some cases torn. With cultured meat there is no environment where these challenges are put on the meat, which results in it being more mush than muscle. 

There have been advances in this area though, with everything from adding gelatin to give "muscles" more structure to adding iron-carrying proteins to add texture and colour to the meat product, but it seems there will be a bit more development required before we can cut into a cultured chateaubriand and be fooled.

The Twitter exchange - culture swap your social media

The Twitter exchange - culture swap your social media

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