The world's first stem cell-derived hamburger was produced five years ago, said the Dutch company Mosa Meat. The company expects that a hamburger meatball to cost $ 1 in the near future.
In 2050, the world population will exceed 9 billion and according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, meat demand will be 70 percent above the current level. Most of the agricultural land is already used for livestock. While livestock breeding causes considerable water scarcity, it should be underlined that this problem is constantly growing. For example, 5 thousand 900 liters of water is spent for a hamburger meatball which is called “900 quarter pounds” and which is slightly more than a hundred grams.
At this point, “clean meat” produced in a laboratory environment as a solution comes into play. The artificial meat, which has been studied to meet the meat needs of the world's population and has grown rapidly without harming human health and the environment, has been receiving positive results for the last five to six years. Producer firms continue to receive investments for artificial meat, which is prepared to take its place in the food culture of the future. It seems that there are only 10 years left till the launch of artificial meat.
Of course, when it comes to artificial meat, questions like “Does it taste like meat” or “What are its effects on health?” comes to mind. Some groups defend clean meat since it doesn’t harm the environment and animals. As for health, some think that it is healthier than normal meat since it is produced without pesticides and harmful bacteria.
Real meat taste from stem cell to muscle cell
The concept of clean meat is used for the meat produced in labs because the meat produced in this environment are far from the effects of disease, hormones, antibiotics and pesticides. Muscle cells, cells suitable for development of stem cells or myoblast cells are extracted from an animal. The method can change. For example, stem cells can be also produced from the birds’ feathers.
In recent years, research on cells and cell growth has led scientists to develop a method to grow muscle tissue from a small sample in labs. This method, which was developed for the production of human organs, allowed meat production in laboratory environment. The resulting stem cells are developed in the bioreactor which makes feeding into muscle cells.
The most quoted method today is a scaffolding-based technique. In principle, this method allows the reproduction of appropriate muscle cells on a scaffold in the presence of a nutritional culture medium (muscle food). The scaffold is periodically moved to simulate animal movements, stretching and eventually producing a lean and artificial muscle that can mimic a true animal muscle. It is at least theoretically possible to maintain this process indefinitely by removing several myoblast cells at the end of each production process.
Finally, when the muscle is fully grown, it is harvested from the scaffold and is usually shredded afterwards. Depending on future developments, it is foreseen that all the muscles as large as a real animal can be produced. This means an option with the same taste and texture as the animal meat for consumption.
In restaurants in 2021, on market in 10 years
The fact that the companies that produce artificial meat are getting serious investments seems to attract new companies to this market. At first, more simple meat products such as sausages, hamburger patties and chicken pieces are expected to be produced, but also complex products such as tenderloin and fish can be produced.
The first clean meat to be placed on the market shelves is Mose Meat, which was produced as a result of many years of research at Maastricht University, and will soon be investing 8.8 million dollars. Mose Meat says that land and water resources are limited to meet a 70% meat consumption increase, and 99% less land and 96% less water will be used with artificial meat production.
Meat produced in the laboratory reduces water, soil and labor requirements. In 2015, Memphis Meats, which launched the company in 2015, produced meatballs from stem cells. In August 2017, it was supported by a group of investors, including Bill Gates, and in 2018, it acquired investment from Tyson Foods, one of the food giants. The company is not limited to beef but also produces artificial chicken and duck meat. One of the largest meat producers in North America, Cargill is also an investor in Memphis Meats.
The effect of artificial meat on health
Dr. Mert Çınar shares the following views on clean meat: Omega 3 fatty acids are abundant, cholesterol is low, healthy red meat can be produced. When it is cheap, it can remedy the problems of hunger and malnutrition in the third world countries.
Çınar also says: We need to test the long-term effects on human to grant a new food license under EU law, which means at least a 2-year period of animal experiments… The EU approved GMO after a 30-day period of animal experiments. In Austria, the research carried out on animals for two years at the University of Vienna in Austria revealed that animals had liver damage and infertility, so the EU didn’t approve. The important point here is: Will they feed a carnivorous animal with meat for two years and look at the results? or Will they just put the meat on market saying it contains no GMO?
It is estimated that the current price of hamburger will be 9 euro when the production process is brought to industrial dimension. In the next 10 years the price of a hamburger in supermarkets is expected to be around 1 euro.
