Animal meat from stem cells - Fusion - WeRIndia

Soon, meat lovers can eat meat without killing animals. Memphis Meats Inc. which was founded by three scientists has developed a new technique to produce meat in lab. Using this technique, meat can be produced from stem cells of animals and thus avoid killing animals to eat meat. The company is based on San Francisco. One of the co-founders of the company is an Indian-American. His name is Uma S Valeti. He is a cardiologist and an associate professor of medicine at the University of Minnesota. The other two scientists are Nicholas Genovese who is working as a stem cell biologist, and Will Clem, a biomedical engineer. Will Clem also owns a chain of barbeque restaurants in Memphis.

The meat produced by this technique is healthier, sustainable and safer as per Uma Valeti. Neither bacterial contaminations nor high saturated fat issues are involved in this. Furthermore, comparatively very low i.e. 90 percent of less greenhouse emissions are associated with this technique. There is no need to use antibiotics unlike in the production of traditional meat.

The team identifies the cells that can renew themselves to produce meat. Then all the essential nutrients such as sugar, minerals, etc. are provided to these cells in bio-reactor tanks. Using these nutrients, the cells develop into skeletal muscle and are ready to harvest within 21 days. The team of scientists is working on the cells of beef, chicken and pork at present and they conducted trial runs on beef meat. They are planning to establish a manufacturing center in the US and later extend it to India and China.

At present, the source cells can be collected without killing the animals. However, the process is done with the fetal bovine serum that is drawn from the blood of unborn calves. The team is working on replacing the serum with a plant-based alternative in the near future so that they can put an end to the practice of animal extraction.

Image Reference: TheBetterIndia