Food is one of the necessities of survival. A good meal is also one of life’s great pleasures. When it comes to a source of the protein needed for good health, it’s hard to top meat. The various kinds of animal foods are also delicious and enjoyed by millions.
That said, in order to eat meat, animals must be slaughtered and no matter how humanely it’s done, the result is the death of a living creature. Another problem is that cattle ranches are responsible for 14% of the greenhouse gases that threaten the life of the planet. Is it possible to enjoy meat without guilt? Thanks to food technology, the answer is yes.
Cultivated Meat
Thanks to food technology companies such as Aleph Farms of Israel, it is possible to enjoy meat without contributing to global warming and without an animal being killed. Animal-based foods can be produced in a lab without having to raise the animal.
There are more than 100 food-cultivation companies in the world. Over the past decade, they have developed the ability to cultivate stem cells in a bioreactor filled with a nutrient broth. The result is meat with the texture flavor and nutrition of traditional meats that come from animals.
Chicken
One of the first meats successfully cultivated was chicken. It’s a popular food in many cuisines throughout the world and is offered by several food tech companies. Currently, only Singapore has approved the sale of cultivated meat but other nations, including the U.S., are expected to eventually follow suit.
Cultivated chicken comes in both ground form and in nuggets and reportedly tastes no different than standard chicken. It’s not the only kind of lab-grown meat available as fish has also been cultivated as has beef.
Steaks
Beef is more challenging to cultivate but several companies have been able to do it successfully. Most lab-grown beef comes in ground form for use in hamburgers and meatloaf. However, these innovative companies are using plant-based, microscopic structures to allow the tissue to grow in the shape of a steak.
This replicates the muscle fibers found in beef that come from cattle. The meat is then placed in a second nutrient broth for an additional four weeks. The results have been amazing. The resulting steaks are on the small side but those who have tried them report that they have the flavor and texture of actual steaks. They grill up just as nicely with a seared outside and a tender, juicy center.
Some companies are also using a 3D bioprinter to combine fat cells with the muscle to create marbled steaks. The experiments are still in the early stages but results have been promising and it looks as though beautifully marbled cultivated steaks will be available in the near future.
Feeding the world has long been the job of farmers. Animal foods are healthy and delicious but come with the problems of having to slaughter living creatures and harming the environment. Thanks to food technology, people can enjoy meat without the guilt. for those who are Jewish, cultivated meat is kosher.
