Small pigs from death, and environmental burden reduction: "artificial meat" what is good?

Environmental protection, emission reduction, avoidance of slaughter, but remains controversial artificial meat, benefits in March 2003, in exhibition France Nantes a little piece of "artificial meat".

Meat master is not brought up in the Meadow, does not call, do not run, it is in artificial containers, "eat" hydroponic grow up, but it does look like a real meat.

In the next 10 years, you may eat the meat. This thing sounds a little surreal, but it has some enterprises invested money, a group of scientists while they want to achieve. Why is it so hard to do this kind of "anti-nature?" because if the artificial meat really commercialized, will bring many foreseeable benefits.

1 history

Churchill and NASA's pioneer

"The history of the artificial meat".

The first proposed the concept of a science fiction writer lasiwei hereby (KurdLasswitz). In his novel "double star" (In TwoPlanets), "synthesis of flesh" is a Martian introduced one of Earth's synthetic food. Further concept is Churchill in the 1930s. He once said: "after 50 years, we will not do ' to eat a chicken breast, chicken wings as the whole chickens up ' this kind of ridiculous. We can in a suitable medium in training them respectively. ”

Lasiwei is a pioneer in the novel "the concept of" artificial meat.

Scientists really begin to take seriously "the idea of artificial meat" or in the stem cell culture technologies.

The first want to use this method of meat production is a United States National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA). They have very practical considerations: the future of space travel might take several years, and how to solve the problem of eating pork cosmonauts? in space limited aircraft in pig-certainly not a solution. How artificial culture meat? 2001, NASA began to experiment in artificial meat. They used the Turkey muscle cell culture artificial meat, ultimately only a thin layer of tissue. This thing is nothing like Turkey, NASA had to give up.

The first "eat" artificial meat in 2000, the United States Tunduru University (Touro) support of the Biological Sciences Research Consortium with Goldfish cell culture out artificial fish.

In 2001 the Netherlands Amsterdam University Dermatology experts wetterhoff, physician Alan and businessmen library's announced that applied for creating "artificial meat" international patent. Their patents included in the muscle cells to join collagen, and then put them in the nutrient solution, inducing them to split the proliferation. Artificial meat and medical? with artificial meat similar technology, or training in the treatment of muscular dystrophy of artificial muscles. Now these two aspects are also learn from each other, for example, in order to achieve similar natural meat tastes, artificial meat must have similar organizational structures, you may need to draw on the medical technology of the "organization".

In 2001, the United States of Fort Wayne (Jon F.Vein) also apply for a patent, allegedly to cultivate the transferor had muscle fibers.

He said that their World War II in Japan Najaf when thinking about this thing.

In 2008, the Netherlands Government funded 400 million financing of artificial meat experiment.

The same year, the world's most important animal protection organizations, animal ethics Federation (PETA) took out $ 1 million bonus for awards made by 2012 at a "successful" in the artificial meat market of the company. "Successful" requirements: first, the taste and texture synthesis and regular chicken without distinction of "artificial chicken"; second, to be approved the production of "artificial chicken" successfully in the United States more than 10 States for commercial sales, its price and routine chicken.

2 benefits

Small pigs from death, and environmental burden reduction

PETA support artificial meat of the reason is very direct: if artificial meat full instead of natural meat, then there will be many animals avoid the bad environment of growth, to avoid the fate of slaughter.

In theory, a pig on the extraction of muscle stem cells can produce several tons of pork, and extraction of stem cells the suffering caused by the operation is small. Slaughter of livestock scenes did make a lot of people upset, but the meat's natural desire to have not vanished. If you use artificial meat instead of natural meat, so the above problem is solved.

From environmentalism, artificial meat instead of natural meat also has great benefits.

Livestock manure could contaminate land and water; they fart contains large amounts of methane, and methane greenhouse effect than carbon dioxide on 25 times bigger. Livestock on the environment caused considerable stress, such as goat will eat grass-roots out of the pasture. Animal hooves, horns, bones, skin and internal organs are often discarded, resulting in a lot of pollution. According to statistics, United States of livestock slaughtering industry each year to 14 million tons of throwing garbage. According to FAO data, the current global land area of 30% is used for the aquaculture industry (including pasture and feed field). Human activities result in greenhouse gas emissions, 18% from aquaculture. But as the global population growth and the improvement of living standards, meat consumption to 2050 will be doubled, from the 2007 2.84 billion tons up to 2050 of 6 billion tonnes! this will undoubtedly on the environment, a lot of pressure. While artificial meat in theory does not cause these problems. Artificial meat no waste, no wool, leather, Horn, bone, cannot eat, stereoscopic production land occupied. Therefore, "artificial meat" production on the environment is quite friendly.

At the same time, the artificial meat may also be more than the natural meat "

health ”。 Because of the artificial meat production process does not require the use of antibiotics, but also to artificially control flesh of nutrients. For example, fish of the stem cells can be used to produce Omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acid ". Then this kind of thing and lab developed a combination of pork, producing both fat taste and will not cause high blood lipid levels and coronary sclerosis of pork.

3 controversy

Taste, cost is the key

A thousand good million, if people do not want to eat, all is no good.

King's College, University of London (King'sCollege) of biochemists Alice said: "the taste of meat and gene-related, not yet and your animals part time, eat meat happiness comes from the complex structure of muscle and fat. It can be copied remains a problem. "If artificial meat appearance, smell, taste, texture and other factors and natural meat, it might not be able to compete with natural meat, could improve, and complete the" dead "on the beach. In addition, the lack of fat and bones although scientists appear to be a benefit, but for old tie but perhaps it difficult to accept.

At the same time, some experts warn that the lab training out of the meat might prejudice the health.

United Kingdom's most important Organic Agriculture Organization "soil Alliance" (SoilAssociation) Policy Manager (PM) Hawk Ridge (EmmaHockridge) said: "the new technology brings minor impact, so still need monitoring. " She also said that organic agriculture relies on grain and livestock of the energy cycle, the livestock off this system will damage the ecosystem. Industrial production of artificial meat may need to add some substances in meat, or it may generate some new pollution, now is also unpredictable.

And the biggest opposition from the cost of artificial meat.

Artificial meat need training apparatus, culture medium, a variety of chemical substances and precise delivery of thesesubstances, as well as strict instruments sterile environment, if you are not developing the meat quickly and efficiently, it simply can't compete with the "low tech" of traditional livestock competition. In 2008, United States of Pennsylvania University stem cell research expert van der Burg (HermanVandenburgh) calculated, in the laboratory every manufacturing 1 kg of meat requires investment of $ 5 million. But just in artificial meat progress Netherlands biologist Richard Streeter said that while he and his colleagues did not determine the commercial production of artificial meat need much, but industrial production phase, artificial meat and natural meat equivalent or lower. His argument is that artificial meat requires less land and water, and reduces the skin, bones, nerves, offal, meat can be cheaper than natural. They both are wrong, you also need the test of time.

New thematic interviews/reporter Liu Zheng

This special appreciated:

Cloud Centerless (United States Purdue University Biology Department of agricultural and food engineering doctorate)

Luo yunbo (China Agricultural University in food science and nutrition, Dean of College of engineering)

Feng Zhi-Hua (huaxi hospital Dr. cell biology)