It’ll all sort out soon afterwards, and almost everyone will be eating synthetic meat, whichever category it falls into. Who knows, a new category might be formed… time will tell.

What interests me is if they can create a type of red meat that is low in cholesterol…

For that matter, so am I. I’m a dedicated omnivore, but I have to admit the practices of the meat industries make me uneasy, especially from an environmental perspective. When someone manages to make “artificial” meat that is indistinguishable from that cut out of an animal’s carcass, I’ll be first in line to buy it.

I also suppose it takes far less resources to just grow a slab of meat instead of raising an entire cow, and then cutting it up. And there’d be no brain that suffers. So both animal lovers and environmentalists should be pleased? We can all have celebratory burgers.

Also, the benefit of reducing animal suffering is simply a side note in my opinion. The real benefits come from significantly reduced environmental footprints per calorie, more control over nutritional makeup, reduced risk of E. Coli and other pathogens, and likely a better tasting meat in the long run. Sure, Peta could help, but once the research is done I believe the market will run with it.

http://thielfoundation.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4&Itemid=11

You need to know about industrial farming – go visit one of these places – to understand that the more we can remove ourselves from growing meat like this, the better we all are. The only thing missing here is front-ending this process with synthetic biology fueled by a gigantic chemical factory to provide the meat and finally separate ourselves completely from this part of the natural world.

I think it’s great. We need more. MORE! And FASTER!

custormer perception = function of cost, health benefit, animal suffering.

health benefit = unchanged or better

cost = exponentially decreases?

scalability = exponentially increases?

suffering = eliminated

contamination or mislabelling = ‘regulation’ challenge

regulation = function of profit, politics, lobbying of rich competitors hurt by the new tech.

animal welfare organisation support: I think some of them have already come out in favour of this new tech, or at least people like vegetarians have commented they condone it?

Motivating politicians taking backhanders from opposing lobbyists to regulate will be the biggest challenge given their record on labelling kosher/halal in the UK (even after their own independent expert advisory group recommended it as far back as 2003, they still won’t do it).

But if this new industry can convincingly self-regulate, as it would benefit them to do so, then the politicians can be taken out of the loop. Good regulation, labelling products clearly, provides for people still on the ‘yuck factor’ wagon to exercise their freedom of choice not to participate.

The idea is interesting, but for me it has a Yuck factor that I am wondering how others will perceive food made this way? Peta or those pushing to end killing or suffering of animals must get behind it to help it along.

Has me thinking of the Boneless Chicken ranch cartoon from Gary Larson. http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&sa=X&biw=1268&bih=678&tbm=isch&prmd=imvns&tbnid=ikA_T3YOO475jM:&imgrefurl=http://www.wondercafe.ca/discussion/social/whats-so-funny&docid=mGG7C-MNQMqBrM&imgurl=http://www.madedition.com/wp-content/uploads/Boneless-Chicken-Ranch-Far-Side.jpg&w=529&h=640&ei=RlMuUK2hH8WSswbDpID4Cw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=330&vpy=135&dur=96&hovh=248&hovw=204&tx=72&ty=114&sig=108339806278763543418&page=1&tbnh=160&tbnw=140&start=0&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0,i:79