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Lab-grown chicken on the menu for the first time

Lab-grown chicken on the menu for the first time
Memphis Meats has served up the first chicken and duck made from lab-grown meat
Memphis Meats has served up the first chicken and duck made from lab-grown meat
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Memphis Meats plans to continue to work on the taste, texture, nutritional value and price of its cultured meat, which could be ready for the public in 2021
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Memphis Meats plans to continue to work on the taste, texture, nutritional value and price of its cultured meat, which could be ready for the public in 2021
Memphis Meats' duck a l'orange was made from poultry cells, without needing to raise and slaughter any actual ducks
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Memphis Meats' duck a l'orange was made from poultry cells, without needing to raise and slaughter any actual ducks
The chicken and duck follows on from the company's previous lab-grown meatball, served up in February 2016
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The chicken and duck follows on from the company's previous lab-grown meatball, served up in February 2016
Memphis Meats has served up the first chicken and duck made from lab-grown meat
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Memphis Meats has served up the first chicken and duck made from lab-grown meat
View gallery - 4 images

If you find yourself torn between cravings and ethical concerns every time you tuck into a chicken nugget, there might soon be a way you can have your meat and eat it too. Memphis Meats has just served up chicken and duck meat cultivated in a lab from poultry cells, meaning no animals were harmed in the making of the meal.

Along with the ethical issues of animal cruelty that surround a carnivorous diet, feeding, breeding and keeping livestock for food has an enormous environmental impact. The animals burp more greenhouse gases into the air than all modes of human transport, and require large swathes of land to be cleared, not to mention all the food, water, and care they need. Studies show that growing meat in a lab setting could go a long way towards solving those problems.

In 2013, the public got a taste of beef that had never actually been a cow, but as impressive as that achievement was, it was reportedly pretty bland and cost as much as a house. Companies like Impossible Burger are working on improving the look and taste, and in February 2016, Memphis Meats unveiled what it called a "clean" meatball.

Next on the menu from the company is southern fried chicken and duck a l'orange, which the company says is the first time poultry has been cultivated in the lab. Rather than raise and slaughter animals, the company simply takes muscle cells from animals without harming them and grows them in vats, in a process Memphis likens to brewing beer.

Memphis Meats' duck a l'orange was made from poultry cells, without needing to raise and slaughter any actual ducks
Memphis Meats' duck a l'orange was made from poultry cells, without needing to raise and slaughter any actual ducks

"It is thrilling to introduce the first chicken and duck that didn't require raising animals," says Uma Valeti, CEO of Memphis Meats. "This is a historic moment for the clean meat movement. Chicken and duck are at the center of the table in so many cultures around the world, but the way conventional poultry is raised creates huge problems for the environment, animal welfare, and human health. It is also inefficient. We aim to produce meat in a better way, so that it is delicious, affordable and sustainable."

Again, the meal was probably prohibitively expensive, but reducing the cost of production is one of Memphis Meats' main priorities, along with improving the taste, texture and nutritional value of the meat. If all goes to plan, the company has set a target of 2021 to finally serve up this clean meat to consumers.

The team outlines the process in the video below.

Source: Memphis Meats (PDF)

How to make cell-based meat

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7 comments
7 comments
EzaelDeMarco
Our the near future will be ... we could produce all the food that want directly home and will be more genuine :-)
JasonGregson
First step on the road to popping nutrient pills at mealtimes, thankfully not in my lifetime but one day maybe necessary to feed the world's explosive population, sans livestock and thus saving the environment.
JasonGregson
Heston Blumenthal will, no doubt, be their first customer!
LordInsidious
This is awesome. I think that the lab grown meat industry will have more positive impacts then what they are saying as we will be able to stop over fishing, fish farming, growing food for our food, stop deforestation for grazing land etc. I think that this will also help farming return to a more humane practice as farmers can start focusing on quality and not quantity.
PAV
"the company simply takes muscle cells from animals without harming them" Am I the only one that found this statement Ironic?
John Gochnauer
What ethical concerns?
Grunchy
Yeah well, why not grow human meat then. If there's no ethical concerns.