Growing meat without growing animals

Growing meat without growing animals

www.slate.com

Two years ago, I proposed a compromise between carnivores and vegetarians: We couldn't change our craving for meat, but we could change the way we sated it. The solution was to grow meat in labs, the way we grow therapeutic tissue from stem cells.

Looks like I might get my wish.

(visit the link for the full news article)

The idea of this just makes my stomach turn. We know nothing about what this type of altercation to cells might do to humans, let alone the ick factor. And to me, it seems the world is scrambling for new ways to feed the people. Strange times indeed.

www.slate.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Eh.
Sounds fine to me.
Not sure how "Vat-Grown Meat" would taste though.
Might not taste the same.
And if no animal had to suffer for me to sate my carnivorous tendencies I say awesome.
Seeing as to how respect for all life is something I believe we all should have.

But like the Tool song "Disgustipation" "This is necessary. Life feeds on life.".
But if we could figure out a way out of that cycle and no animal has to suffer and die. Once again. Awesome.

I really can't imagine them being able to do this economically on a large scale, and I couldn't imagine eating meat grown in a vat or petrit dish.

reply to post by WraothAscendant


You know what Wrath, your right. I didn't even think about the animals that would cease to suffer. I stopped eating most meat a few months ago, after seeing the movie 'fast food nation', the ick factor is not what made me stop, it was the heartbreaking plight of the animals. I cannot buy into that anymore, I stopped cold turkey on beef, fast food, and most restraunts alltogether. I still eat chicken, but not a lot, I eat a lot of fish, but I try to only eat the local grown catfish, no imported stuff.

edit=LOL! I just noticed that I wrote 'cold turkey on beef', I found that statement very funny for some reason!

[edit on 23-4-2008 by space cadet]

reply to post by space cadet


I salute your stance on that.
Something should be done about it and I think this idea might be just the ticket.
Unfortunately I am a carnivore by nature and couldn't just drop meat as it is really the only thing that I eat by nature. Most veggies taste major ICK to me.
And I just don't think that my abstaining would change much of anything except make me go hungry. hEh. I wouldn't eat if I didn't have to anyway.

Ugh this post makes no sense.

LoL it was funny.


[edit on 23-4-2008 by WraothAscendant]

reply to post by space cadet


Home-grown meat? Why not? Eliminates the slaughter!

You know, while I was reading the article, an image came to mind:
Remember when that steak crawled across the countertop by itself, in
Poltergiest? Creepier than Michael Meyers, I know. But still, I ran to my
fridge, and checked for anything moving, and to see if I had any A-1 sauce

No animal: no feeding, no noise, no caca, no grazing, no flies, just flesh
under glass! The key thing, i guess, would be determining when it's RIPE!

reply to post by FRIGHTENER
My first thought was scenes from the game Fallout. There's all these gobs of flesh everywhere and the vats they're grown in.. Yuck

reply to post by FRIGHTENER


Ahh the poltergiest steak scene.....that brings back memories..LOL! I don't know if I could eat this stuff, but if it stops the slaughter I am for it. Just do enough testing to know that people will be safe eating it.

Ooo: I like the idea of satiating the taste buds of meat eaters and avoiding the unnecessary pain and suffering experienced by animals during slaughter time. However, I wonder about the consciousness factor of anything alive that is 'growing', whether in a lab or not. I did remember that poltergeist scene of a piece of meat moving along the top of a kitchen counter. It's alive!



[edit on 2008-4-24 by pikypiky]

Originally posted by WraothAscendant
Not sure how "Vat-Grown Meat" would taste though.

Tastes like chicken.... doesn't everything?

Another plus would be a huge reduction of greenhouse gasses as emitted from cattle. (cows produce more than cars)

I'm sure the cattle farmers wouldn't like it though, unless they are subsidised by the GOVT or change over to growing meat as opposed to raissing cattle.

Originally posted by pikypiky
Ooo: I like the idea of satiating the taste buds of meat eaters and avoiding the unnecessary pain and suffering experienced by animals during slaughter time.

If an animal is slaughtered properly, there is very little if any pain involved.

I've slaughtered hogs, cattle, goats, chickens, turkeys, deer, and rabbits. The goal isn't to cause unnecessary suffering, but to make the process quick, practically painless, and efficient. A single shot, a swift swing of a hachet, or a deft twist is all that is required to kill most animals by an experienced butcher. They're usually dead before they know what has happened. I'll grant you that commercial slaughtering is a little different, and typically the alleviation of pain is not their primary concern unfortunately.

I hate to see an animal suffer needlessly, but humans need meat to have a nutritionally balanced diet. Vegetables are great, but when you have hard labor to do, they just don't provide the energy requirements needed.

Try splitting a rick of wood with a 15lb maul on a garden salad. You wouldn't make it very far before you collapsed.

reply to post by LLoyd45


Wow LLoyd, i'm not familiar with fallout...but would love to see it! I'm
afraid my video game experience peaked with 'Space Duel' (3-D, full-
color version of Asteroids) in 1981! No meat! (unless you got hit)!

If lab-grown meat suddenly became available at the deli, would the guy
behind the counter still be called a Butcher?

Meat Monitor?
Specimen Sampler?
Tendon Portioner?
Molecular Technician?
Or 'Ol Painless?

Sounds disgusting but we could save the terrible slaughtering of animals.

reply to post by FRIGHTENER
Fallout is a cool game, and there are two versions of it presently. A third is supposed to come out sometime this year. If you want a crash course on survival from an "End of the World perspective", it's a great starting point.

As for whether the deli guy would still be called a butcher, it's a good question. I guess technically speaking he'd still be a butcher since the job involves the slicing, cutting, grinding, and preparation of meat products. The job would definitely be easier without all the bones to be sawed or removed though.

The downside is there will be no more drum sticks or spare ribs in vat produced pieces of meat. Think of how unsatisfactory holiday meals will be when all you have is a slab of meat rather than the beautiful ham or turkey as a centerpiece to the festivities.

Somehow meat without the prerequisite animals involved just seems unnatural and creepy to me..

I saw a news story awhile back on VatMeat. The tissue doesn't develop any muscle so its kind of like meat flavored jello. Not exactly my idea of yum.

[edit on 24/4/08 by MikeboydUS]

If i'm going to eat meat, i'd rather it was grown on an animal around bones with blood pumping thorugh it and nutrients from the food the animal eats in it.. not some clinical tasteless artificial meat ugh.. It's enough to turn anyone vegetarian!

im a vegan, so i could care less. But i would watch yourselves when it comes to eating something artificially grown. "I never saw no miracle of science, That didn't go from a blessing to a curse"-sting

reply to post by LLoyd45


Thanks LLoyd, I'll look into it, is it a video game, or a computer game?
Never played a computer game, but my wife has Nintendo DS; pretty cool.

Yeah, I guess the meat man would still be called a butcher, but i guess the
band saw would just sit there rusting, without bones to sever!

No drumsticks , bummer; no ribs or wings, either! Speaking of center-
pieces, that reminded me of 'Surviving the Game' , with Ice-T, Rutger
Hauer, and Gary Busey, when they're at the remote cabin, about to feast
on the pig; and they have the pig's head as a centerpiece. Gary Busey is
telling them they have to look into the pig's eyes, as they consume the
meat, to take in the 'soul'!

reply to post by MikeboydUS


Yuck, Mike, thanks for telling us! I think you're right, without the animal
walking and running around, there'd be no muscle development! I don't
care for Jello too much, unless I'm watching 'Animal House', with John
Belushi devouring it!