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Billionaires and big ag are joining venture investors to fund lab-grown meat

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Re: Billionaires and big ag are joining venture investors to fund lab-grown meat

#81
post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It would probably be illegal to market a product that wasn't butter as "Clean Butter", because there are rules about labeling things as butter. So I won't be surprised if the animal products industry lobbies for rules about what can be called meat (or if such rules already exist). Of course such labeling concerns don't apply to an internet discussion, but they do indicate that people care about what's in a name.

> Of course such labeling concerns don't apply to an internet discussion, but they do indicate that people care about what's in a name. Calling something clean meat , based purely on arbitrary ethical grounds, implies that what other people eat and call meat is somehow unclean. It is a value judgement on the others .

I assumed "clean" referred to the fact that lab-grown tissue would have a much lower risk of disease. Animals have digestive tracts full of bacteria, and farms aren't exactly pristine. Every year in the US, meat-borne pathogens kill thousands and sicken millions.[1]

1. https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/5/5/99-0502_article

Re: Billionaires and big ag are joining venture investors to fund lab-grown meat

#82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well what's the definition of meat? A typical simple one is "animal flesh". Cells grown in a vat aren't flesh, they are a tissue culture. Note that I'm not particularly animated by the issue, I just don't agree that it is as simple as "claiming that meat is not meat".

This seems like a particular definition of "flesh" that's not particularly germane to meatness. Lab meat is made of the exact same animal cells that regular meat is, the tissue just happens to never have inhabited an animal. When we eat meat, we don't value the fact that the cells we're eating were once part of an animal, we mostly value the taste. It seems to me that this isn't a necessarily property of meat but a c…

I'm pretty sure it is not a particular definition.

Re: Billionaires and big ag are joining venture investors to fund lab-grown meat

#83
post #23

For those that are curious, as an early investor and advocate for clean meat, I wrote about my experience eating Memphis Meats' products and why their solution is so much better than convention meat production: https://medium.com/@sethbannon/i-just-ate-meat-for-the-first...

I find it disingenous to call meat grown in a lab clean meat . Would you call Margarine clean butter ?

If the stats in the article are true, 96% less greenhouse emissions, 45% less energy, 99% less land use and 96% less water used in the production of the lab meat, I think it makes perfect sense to call it clean meat. Plus it doesn't involve the death of an animal, which is pretty "clean" I guess.

Re: Billionaires and big ag are joining venture investors to fund lab-grown meat

#85
post #81
post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Of course such labeling concerns don't apply to an internet discussion, but they do indicate that people care about what's in a name. Calling something clean meat , based purely on arbitrary ethical grounds, implies that what other people eat and call meat is somehow unclean. It is a value judgement on the others .

I assumed "clean" referred to the fact that lab-grown tissue would have a much lower risk of disease. Animals have digestive tracts full of bacteria, and farms aren't exactly pristine. Every year in the US, meat-borne pathogens kill thousands and sicken millions.[1] 1. https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/5/5/99-0502_article

> I assumed "clean" referred to the fact that lab-grown tissue would have a much lower risk of disease. Animals have digestive tracts full of bacteria, and farms aren't exactly pristine. Every year in the US, meat-borne pathogens kill thousands and sicken millions.

OK, let's check the numbers.

According to the CDC https://www.cdc.gov/foodborneburden/attribution/attribution-... from 1998 - 2008 from the total of foodborn illnesses 46% were linked to plant based, 22% to meat and poultry, 20% to dairy and eggs and 6% to fish products. From the total number of deaths 23% were linked to plant based products, 29% to meat and poultry (19% to poultry).

You can see a more detailed graphic here https://www.cdc.gov/foodborneburden/attribution-image.html#f...

Re: Billionaires and big ag are joining venture investors to fund lab-grown meat

#86
post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Slaughterhouses and packaged meat are a pretty recent invention, certainly not one we’ve evolved with over thousands of generations. Is it really more natural to open a cellophane package of ground meat that comes from who knows how many animals?

What makes you think slaughter houses were needed? That just made things more "efficient". Humans and our ancestors have been eating meat since we have been a species.

It’s processing, which is what you were knocking meat alternatives for.

Re: Billionaires and big ag are joining venture investors to fund lab-grown meat

#87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It would probably be illegal to market a product that wasn't butter as "Clean Butter", because there are rules about labeling things as butter. So I won't be surprised if the animal products industry lobbies for rules about what can be called meat (or if such rules already exist). Of course such labeling concerns don't apply to an internet discussion, but they do indicate that people care about what's in a name.

Usually, though, lab-grown meat is actually meat. It's possible that it'd have to be labeled "synthetic" or "lab-grown" (similar to how synthetic diamonds are named), but claiming that meat is not meat is nonsensical.

Diamonds are pretty simple from a chemical point of view, atoms of Carbon linked together in a particular structure. You can't compare something as complex as creating animal meat with creating synthetic diamonds.

Re: Billionaires and big ag are joining venture investors to fund lab-grown meat

#88
post #19
post #8

Highly processed food made in a lab has a big chance to have hidden side effects. I would not eat this until it is tested in the wild for a few years.

I think it's safer, probably harder to get mad cow disease or salmonella, don't you think? Also, today we get it from animals pumped full of antibiotics, hormones living in their own excrement.

> I think it's safer, probably harder to get mad cow disease or salmonella, don't you think?

Not really, you have a good chance to get sick (I'm talking about foodborn disease) no matter what you eat. According to the CDC from 1998 - 2008 the percent of deaths/illnesses is about 46% - 54% between eating plants vs animal products https://www.cdc.gov/foodborneburden/attribution-image.html#f...

Re: Billionaires and big ag are joining venture investors to fund lab-grown meat

#89
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I love how highly, highly processed foods are suddenly A-OK to many people here once it's a fake meat product. Whatever happened to the concept of, "Eat real food?" Full Ingredient List: >Water, Textured Wheat Protein, Coconut Oil, Potato Protein, Natural Flavors, 2% or less of: Leghemoglobin (soy), Yeast Extract, Salt, Soy Protein Isolate, Konjac Gum, Xanthan Gum, Thiamin (Vitamin B1), Zinc, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Ribo…

Is MSG considered an artificial flavoring? I was under the impression that it is both naturally occurring in biology and that its health problems are greatly over-exaggerated. Nonetheless, point taken.

"Natural flavoring" is not natural in any real sense of the word. It's like "fat free" labels on unhealthy food.

Re: Billionaires and big ag are joining venture investors to fund lab-grown meat

#90
post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, but that’s only true if you are buying shitty bargain-basement meat.

.. or any kind of processed food which contains "meat"

> or any kind of processed food which contains "meat"

Not really, you have a good chance to get sick (I'm talking about foodborn disease) no matter what you eat. According to the CDC from 1998 - 2008 the percent of deaths/illnesses is about 46% - 54% between eating plants vs animal products https://www.cdc.gov/foodborneburden/attribution-image.html#f...

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