Unit 5: Research Project

1. In Vitro Meat
By: Sam Turchyn

2. Out with the old...

3. ...and in with the new!

4. MEAT the Future
In 1932, Winston Churchill predicted that in
fifty years “we shall escape the absurdity of
growing a whole chicken in order to eat the
breast or wing by growing these parts
separately.” Today, almost eighty years later,
science may finally be getting close to
producing In Vitro meat - muscle tissue
grown in the lab without the rest of the
animal.

5. What is In Vitro Meat?
In Vitro Meat, also known as cultured meat, shmeat,
hydroponic meat, test-tube meat, vat-grown meat, and victimless
meat is the idea of manufacturing meat products through tissue-
engineering technology. The main purpose of this progressive
technology is to produce animal meat without using an actual
animal. Ba lycels ae t ken pa essl fr l e a l a ae putint aculur mediaw e t
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6. Why would we need In Vitro MEAT?
Humans have been eating farm-raised meat for centuries, so why would we
choose to eat meat produced in a lab? As the demand for meat grows across the globe, it
is necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of current meat production.
It is important to consider that developing in vitro
meat concerns large-scale meat productions. Large amounts of fossil fuels are burned
throughout the process of meat production in the production and transport of the housing,
transportation, and slaughter of livestock.
There are also various potential health benefits to eating meat produced in
laboratories. For instance, contamination with bacteria like Salmonella and E. coli could be
reduced. In vitro meat production could eliminate contact with animal contaminants like
feces, thus helping tore solve the most common cause of food-borne illness. Tightly
controlling the percentage and types of fat could also make lab-grown meat healthier. In
vitro meat could also be produced with limited amounts of saturated fats and instead be
rich in beneficial omega-3 fatty acids.

7. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture
Organization, raising livestock produces twenty percent
of human-related greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, it is
responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than the
transportation sector.
United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. “Livestock’s Long S
hadow.”2006.
http://www.fao.org/docrep/010/a0701e/a0701e00.HTM
MEATYFacts!

8. How do you grow In Vitro MEAT in the lab?
The meat we eat is muscle produced from livestock. One way to produce muscle
tissue in the lab is to grow cells that are capable of becoming muscle cells and organizing
themselves into muscle tissue.
To date, most current work has focused on the use of adult stem cells from
livestock to grow In Vitro meat. Adult animals have muscle stem cells called “myosatellite”
cells that are responsible for muscle growth and repair. Scientists can obtain these stem cells
from animal tissue by extracting the muscle stem cells from the material that holds it. The
cells grow in plastic dishes bathed in a nutrient rich liquid. They then grow and divide,
making more muscle cells.
Scientists try to imitate the conditions that produce muscles in animals. They use
electrical, physical, or chemical methods to increase protein content in the muscle cells and
to try and replicate the texture of muscle from an animal.
To create edible meat, scientists would harvest the muscle fibers created in the
lab, grind them, and add flavor and nutrients to produce something like hamburger or
sausage. Current research is focused on creating in vitro meat with a texture similar to
conventional meat and developing the technology to grow large amounts of In vitro meat at
an affordable price.

9. “ We already know that pretty soon we are going
to Mars and we will need to produce food there.
This is not that far away. NASA will probably be
the first to use this technology but then it could be
transferred to the rest of the world.”
- Dr. Mirko Betti, a Canadian food science researcher
MEATY Quotes!

10. A simple Diagram for the Process of In
Vitro MEAT:
1. Take a small biopsy
2. Extract mayosatellite cells
3. Add animal-free growth serum to multiply cells
4. Grow cells on scaffold to form mayofibres which bind together to form muscle
5. Exercise muscle to boost protein
6. Grind up thousands of muscle strips
7. Add flavor, iron and vitamins
8. Cook and EAT!

11. Why isn’t there In Vitro MEAT on my
plate right now?
A major hurdle facing the development of In Vitro meat is the nutrient
liquid the cells use to grow and divide in the lab. A major component of
this liquid comes from animal blood, which is both expensive and
somewhat also defeats the purpose of In Vitro meat. Animal-free
alternatives have been tested, including components taken from
mushrooms and algae, but these are too expensive to be used for large-
scale production.
Another challenge of In Vitro meat production is the difference in
texture between lab-grown and natural meat. In an animal, large masses
of muscle tissue are able to survive and grow because a vast network of
blood vessels delivers nutrients to cells throughout the tissue. In order for
the nutrient rich liquid to reach all cells, current lab-grown muscle can only
be made in small pieces and used to make ground meat like hamburger.
Until scientists develop a way to nourish cells of larger portions of muscle
tissue, a lab-grown steak remains an idea of the future.

12. Cons:
1. Very expensive to produce with current technology
2. Requires enormous investment for Research & Development
3. Unnatural
4. People might be reluctant to switch over from normal meat
5. Limited to ground meat
6. Subject to media criticism
7. Possible unknown health consequences

13. Pros:
1. Potentially cheaper to produce than regular meat
2. Requires less food input
3. Requires less real estate
4. Requires less water
5. Produces less waste
6. Cleaner
7. More ethical in terms of animal welfare
8. Healthier
9. Prevents climate change/global warming
10. Better for public health

14. Juicy In Vitro MEAT Videos:
Science in Seconds - In Vitro Meat
In-Vitro Meat: Bring it on!
Meat The Future

15. Will you ever be
able to look at
meat the same
way?

16. Bibliography (APA-Style):
• Brain, M. (n.d.). How In-Vitro Meat Works – creating meat without killing any animals – The Blogs
at How Stuff Works. The Blogs at How Stuff Works. Retrieved April 29, 2012, from
http://blogs.howstuffworks.com/2009/11/18/how-in-vitro-meat-works-creating-meat-without-killing-any-animals/
• In Search of a Test-Tube Hamburger - TIME. (n.d.). Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News
Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com. Retrieved April 29, 2012, from
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1734630,00.html
• In Search of a Test-Tube Hamburger - TIME. (n.d.). Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News
Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com. Retrieved April 29, 2012, from
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1734630,00.html
• In vitro meat, new technologies, and the “yuck factor” | Practical Ethics. (n.d.). Practical Ethics.
Retrieved April 29, 2012, from http://
blog.practicalethics.ox.ac.uk/2012/03/in-vitro-meat-new-technologies-and-the-yuck-factor/
• In-Vitro Meat: More research, more questions « Aesthetics of Everywhere. (n.d.).
Aesthetics of Everywhere. Retrieved April 29, 2012, from
http://crystalbae.com/2011/05/19/in-vitro-meat-more-research-questions/
• The In Vitro Meat Consortium - Home. (n.d.). The In Vitro Meat Consortium - Home. Retrieved
April 29, 2012, from http://invitromeat.org/
• soon., &certain., a. (n.d.). Eight Ways In-Vitro Meat will Change Our Lives.
H+ Magazine | Covering technological, scientific, and cultural trends that are changing–and will
change–human beings in fundamental ways. Retrieved April29, 2012, from
http://hplusmagazine.com/2009/11/17/eight-ways-vitro-meat-will-change-our-lives/