Cholesterol

Farm animals will have skin, legs, bones, digestive organs, etc.

which are not edible, but turn out as waste.

In cultured meat only the edible part can be grown, saving much on energy, land and water.

The technology, however, is not ready to place a piece of steak on the dinner plate.

It is highly expensive compared with farm meat.

Right now, it can produce only ground and boneless meat.

It has not been possible to grow structured meat like steaks, chicken breast, etc.

Other scientists are experimenting with alternative techniques such as using tissue explants, like growing crystals in a physics laboratory, to grow thick, structured muscle chunks.

However, the problem is to ensure a constant supply of nutrients to the growing cell mass, without which the cells will die.

Scientists are yet to figure out a suitable scaffold structure to supply nutrients to all cells.

However, non-profit organisations such as the “New Harvest” are actively engaged in promoting cultured meat.

They expect that in a decade’s time it will become a reality, just as we culture curds every day.

Dr.

Valdimir Mironov, Director, Shared Tissue Engineering Laboratory at the Medical University of South Carolina envisages a counter top device, like a bread machine, which could produce the meat w...

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