Hamburger meat grown in laboratories is the future

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Mark Post is the Dutch doctor who aims to end the slaughter of animals by consumption of meat, creating a hamburger from stem cells

In 2013, Mark Post presented its first sample of meat made in a laboratory, which was evaluated by food critics who gave a positive rating, although it was not at all similar to traditional animal meat.

Leer en español: ¿Carne para hamburguesa cultivada en laboratorios?

The elaboration of this innovative meat is created from the extraction of animal stem cells, specifically from the muscles in which their cells have the capacity to regenerate the tissue (the healing process after a wound), this can be done inside and outside the body. Professor Post extracts its raw material, which reproduces nimbly, producing thousands of kilos of meat, then adding fat tissue creating hamburger meat.

The interest of professor Mark Post in the meat created in the laboratory lies in three key points that he explains in detail:

1. According to the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United States), in 2050, the production of meat will increase by 50%, which, based on the resources of land, water, and energy, won't be enough for the demand of production, creating a productive imbalance.

2. The entire production process is highly polluting since according to World Health Organization: "between 16 and 20% of these gases (greenhouse effect) come from livestock".

3. The concern, conservation trend, and welfare of animals, will be increasing basing human food on mostly in plants.

Regarding the health concerns through this type of meat, Post is clear when saying for El Tiempo portal: "The amount of protein is the same as that obtained from natural meat and it is very high quality, with all the necessary amino acids. Can we make this a healthy product? Of course we can make it as healthy as beef. We could even make it healthier by removing some of the saturated fatty acids that increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. "

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On the other hand, even if it conserves the animal's life, it would not be the solution for the vegan population since, according to Mark Post, when using the animal to extract the food, the animalist community would not agree with the cow's use. On the other hand, some prefer not to consume animal meat at all since it is unhealthy.

The professor is already in the process of creating a more complete sample of meat with structures more similar to traditional meat and ensures that it will be in the market within approximately 3 years. He also estimates that it will cost $10USD per share, and argues that the high cost lies in the use of medical technologies, which are expensive: "We have to transform some of these processes into something more similar to the that are made in agriculture".

We will have to wait with time for this change in the production processes to be able to give a value judgment on this new type of food that promises to be the future of human consumption.

LatinAmerican Post | Gustavo Cantor Romero

Translated from "¿Carne para hamburguesa cultivada en laboratorios?"