Originally published August 1 2013
Coming soon to a restaurant near you: Lab-grown synthetic hamburgers
by Jonathan Benson, staff writer
(NaturalNews) Synthetic hamburgers are the latest processed food atrocity to emerge from the serpentine laboratory dungeons of modern science, according to a new report by FoodNavigator.com. Food scientists from Maastricht University in the Netherlands will very soon be unveiling a laboratory-grown hamburger made from fake meat and fat that they hope will be a prototype for an eventual commercial release of this culinary abomination.
Back in 2011, Professor Mark Post and his colleagues first spoke to the media about the lab-grown meat concept, which they claim may help eventually meet the dietary needs of a growing global population. Derived from stem cells extracted from actual cattle, Prof. Post's fake meat is grown in vitro, which means it is generated in a petri dish. The resulting tissue is later mixed with lab-grown fat and, voila, you have a man-made burger.
"Our goal is to build one burger in the coming year," explained Prof. Post back in 2011 to FoodNavigator.com. "It's going to cost 250,000 Euros (about $335,000), so it's a very expensive burger ... but hopefully this will create enough enthusiasm and financial support to upscale and economize the processes, so that we can improve and start to think about a real manufacturing process."
Two years later and this goal is finally coming to fruition, as Prof. Post and his colleagues are set to present their man-made meat creation at an exclusive, invite-only west London event in the coming week. Guests will not only have the opportunity to get a first look at the synthetic meat, but they will also be allowed to taste it as part of a momentum-building promotional endeavor.
"Eventually, my vision is that you have a limited herd of donor animals which you keep in stock in the world," explained Prof. Post to reporters recently. "You basically kill animals and take all the stem cells from them, so you would still need animals for this technology."
Pasture-raised animals: The solution to factory farming agricultural woes
Citing statistics that are only true about the factory farming industry, Prof. Post points to the fact that vast quantities of mostly genetically-modified (GM) corn and other grains currently have to be grown to feed commercial cattle, which is putting significant strain on the world's agricultural resources. In order to reverse this trend, he claims, it is necessary to come up with viable alternatives, which he says include lab-grown meat.
But the real truth is that cattle are ruminant animals designed to feed on grass and other similar plant matter, not grains. If animals raised for food were released from their grain feedlots and allowed to roam on natural pastures, not only would a healthier meat product result but the ever-increasing strain on the world's resources would also be lessened. This is the real alternative to the current problems of meat production, not lab-grown meat.
"Pasture-raised animals roam freely in their natural environment where they're able to eat nutritious grasses and other plants that their bodies are adapted to digest," explains Sustainable Table about the benefits of raising cattle on pasture. "In addition to dramatically improving the welfare of farm animals, pasturing also helps reduce environmental damage, and yields meat, eggs, and dairy products that are tastier and more nutritious than foods produced on factory farms."
To learn more about the benefits of raising cattle on pastures as opposed to factory feedlots, check out the Environmental Working Group (EWG)'s Meat Eater's Guide:
http://www.ewg.org
Sources for this article include:
http://www.foodnavigator.com
http://www.huffingtonpost.com
http://www.independent.co.uk
http://www.sustainabletable.org
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