Have you heard the term “cultured meat?”
Maybe you’ve heard of it by one of its other many different names. Some people call it “in vitro meat.” Others call it “lab grown meat.” A few call it “tube steak.”
If you haven’t heard of it at all, it’s time to become familiar with it because you’re going to be hearing more and more about it in upcoming years. It may eventually change the world as you know it.
What is it?
Whatever the name, it’s all the same. It’s a form of cellular agriculture where meat is grown separate from the animal that you’d usually kill and eat. The animal’s role is mainly reduced to being harvested for cells from which the meat will be grown.
Creating cultured meat is similar to the process used in regenerative medicine and involves the use of stem cells, myosatellite cells or myoblasts. Those cells are harvested, introduced to a growth medium and allowed to grow on a scaffold.
Investing in the future
Now, cultured meat isn’t anything new. It made a splash a few years ago when the first cultured burger was introduced to the public in 2013. Back then, many people balked at the burger’s price tag: $330,000. The same burger would now cost just $11 to make.
