Don't listen to Big Cattle — lab-grown meat should still be called "meat"
Lab-grown meat is on its way, and the government is trying to figure out how to regulate it. This week, the US House of Representatives [pdf] released a draft spending bill that proposes that the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) regulate lab-grown meat and figure out how it should be labeled — which is a contentious topic since Big Cattle doesn't want it to be called "meat." Regulation is important, and there's plenty more to learn, but the USDA shouldn't be the only one regulating. And when the product comes to market, yes, it should be called "meat."
Traditional meat, of course, comes from animals that are raised and slaughtered. Lab-grown meat (also called "in-vitro meat," "cultured meat," or "clean meat") is made from animal stem cells grown in a lab. But because the stem cells are typically fed with a serum derived from the blood of calf fetuses, the product uses animal products and isn't vegan. Still, the pitch for lab-grown meat is that it saves animals and also helps the environment because lab-grown meat doesn't take much land or energy to grow. Plus, lab-grown meat doesn't directly create methane emissions, while methane emissions from cows accounted for 16 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions in 2015.
Because of the way that government agencies work, it hasn't even been clear who should regulate lab meat. The USDA traditionally regulates meat, while the US Food and Drug Administration regulates food safety and additives. The proposal that the USDA be in charge of regulation is in line with what the [pdf] National Cattlemen's Beef Association wanted, but some lab-meat advocates fear that USDA will be biased against them in favor of traditional meat. If the USDA will be regulating lab meat, it should at least collaborate with the FDA. There are no slaughterhouses for the USDA to inspect anyway, and the FDA has already been regulating food technology, like the genetically engineered salmon it approved. It makes the most sense for the two to work together.
Previously: U.S. Cattlemen's Association Wants an Official Definition of "Meat"
Related: Lab-Grown Chicken (and Duck) Could be on the Menu in 4 Years
Cargill, Bill Gates, Richard Branson Backed Memphis Meats Expects Meat From Cells in Stores by 2021
'Soylent' Dawkins? Atheist Mulls 'Taboo Against Cannibalism' Ending as Lab-Grown Meat Improves
Related Stories
A company called Memphis Meats has announced that it has developed artificial/synthetic/lab-grown/cultured chicken and duck meat. The company's press release says it plans to sell cultured meat products to consumers as soon as 2021. Duck is identified as key to the mainland China market, which consumes more of it (over 6 billion pounds annually) than the rest of the world combined:
The quest for artificial meat inches forward—the company Memphis Meats announced today it has developed chicken and duck meat from cultured cells of each bird, producing "clean poultry." The firm provided few details, although participants at a tasting reportedly said the chicken tasted like, well, chicken. Below is a repost of a story originally published 23 August 2016 on some of the regulatory challenges and questions facing Memphis Meats and other companies pursuing artificial meats.
[...] So far, none of these synthetic foods has reached the marketplace. But a handful of startup companies in the United States and elsewhere are trying to scale up production. In the San Francisco Bay area in California, entrepreneurs at Memphis Meats hope to have their cell-cultured meatballs, hot dogs, and sausages on store shelves in about 5 years, and those at Perfect Day are targeting the end of 2017 to distribute cow-free dairy products. It's not clear, however, which government agencies would oversee this potential new food supply.
Historically, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) regulates meat, poultry, and eggs, whereas the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversees safety and security for food additives. FDA also approves so-called biologics, which include products made from human tissues, blood, and cells, and gene therapy techniques. But emerging biotechnologies may blur those lines of oversight, because some of the new foods don't fit neatly into existing regulatory definitions. "Cellular culture raises a lot of questions," says Isha Datar, CEO of New Harvest, a New York City–based nonprofit founded to support this nascent industry.
To help provide answers, the White House last year launched an initiative to review and overhaul how U.S. agencies regulate agricultural biotechnology [DOI: 10.1126/science.349.6244.131] [DX]. And the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Washington, D.C., is working on a broader study of future biotechnology developments and regulation, with a report slated for release at the end of this year. In the meantime, industry leaders are thinking about how their potential lab-based foods might be handled by regulators. One approach, they tell ScienceInsider, is to show that their product is similar to an existing product that testing has already shown to pose no hazards. "Most food regulation is about aligning new products with something that's already recognized as safe," Datar notes.
Related: Producing Beef has the Greatest Impact on the Environment Compared to Other Animal Based Foods
Real Vegan Cheese: Coming From a Yeast to You
Would You Try Silicon Valley's Bloody Plant Burger(s)?
Lab-Grown Pork Closer to Reality
Right now, manufactured meat is as real as a flying car.
- Anonymous Coward, 2014
Submitted via IRC for takyon
Cargill Inc., one of the largest global agricultural companies, has joined Bill Gates and other business giants to invest in a nascent technology to make meat from self-producing animal cells amid rising consumer demand for protein that's less reliant on feed, land and water.
Memphis Meats, which produces beef, chicken and duck directly from animal cells without raising and slaughtering livestock or poultry, raised $17 million from investors including Cargill, Gates and billionaire Richard Branson, according to a statement Tuesday on the San Francisco-based startup's website. The fundraising round was led by venture-capital firm DFJ, which has previously backed several social-minded retail startups.
They made the first ever chicken and duck meat that were produced without the animals.
The company expects to have a product in stores by 2021.
"They're the leader in clean meat. There's no one else that far along," says venture capitalist Steve Jurvetson, whose firm led Memphis Meats' recent $17 million Series A. Before he met Valeti in 2016, Jurvetson spent almost five years researching lab-grown meat and meat alternatives, believing the market was set to explode. "They're the only one that convinced me they can get to a price point and a scale that would make a difference in the industry," he says.
Cargill is the largest privately held corporation in the United States in terms of revenue ($109.7 billion in 2017).
Previously: Lab-Grown Chicken (and Duck) Could be on the Menu in 4 Years
Related: Lab-grown meat would 'cut emissions and save energy'
Producing Beef has the Greatest Impact on the Environment Compared to Other Animal Based Foods
Real Vegan Cheese: Coming From a Yeast to You
Would You Try Silicon Valley's Bloody Plant Burger(s)?
Lab-Grown Pork Closer to Reality
The U.S. Cattlemen's Association has asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture to develop an official definition for terms like "meat" and "beef", as plant-based alternatives to meats continue to grow in popularity and lab-grown/cultured meat may be coming soon:
Companies like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat are combining plant-based ingredients and science, rather than animals, to create fake-meat burgers and other products that taste like the real thing.
Now U.S. Cattlemen's Association is looking to draw a line in the sand. The association launched what could be the first salvo in a long battle against plant-based foods. Earlier this month, the association filed a 15-page petition with the U.S. Department of Agriculture calling for an official definition for the term "beef," and more broadly, "meat."
"While at this time alternative protein sources are not a direct threat to the beef industry, we do see improper labeling of these products as misleading," said Lia Biondo, the association's policy and outreach director. "Our goal is to head off the problem before it becomes a larger issue."
[...] While these foods are commonly dubbed "fake meat," there's a little more to the meat-substitute market than that. The Good Food Institute, which advocates a sustainable food supply, breaks it down into two categories: clean meat and plant-based meat. Clean meat refers to "meat" grown in a lab from a small amount of animal stem cells. This kind of meat isn't on the market yet, but it's in development. Plant-based meat is anything that mimics traditional meat but is made mainly using plant ingredients.
Here's an idea: define "meat" for the Cattlemen's Association, then tax it with an exemption for "lab-grown meat".
Related: Lab-Grown Pork Closer to Reality
Lab-Grown Chicken (and Duck) Could be on the Menu in 4 Years
Inside the Strange Science of the Fake Meat that 'Bleeds'
Impossible Foods Just Raised $75 Million for Its Plant-based Burgers
Cargill, Bill Gates, Richard Branson Backed Memphis Meats Expects Meat From Cells in Stores by 2021
Meat Tax Proposed for Sake of Human and Environmental Health.
'Soylent' Dawkins? Atheist mulls 'taboo against cannibalism' ending as lab-grown meat improves
What if human meat is grown? Could we overcome our taboo against cannibalism?"
- @RichardDawkins - 6:15 AM - 3 Mar 2018
https://twitter.com/RichardDawkins/status/969939225180364805
https://archive.fo/kSmgi
"Lab-grown 'clean' meat could be on sale by end of 2018, says producer"
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/clean-meat-lab-grown-available-restaurants-2018-global-warming-greenhouse-emissions-a8236676.html
"'Soylent' Dawkins? Atheist mulls 'taboo against cannibalism' ending as lab-grown meat improves"
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/mar/6/richard-dawkins-mulls-taboo-against-cannibalism-en/
and:
https://www.nationalreview.com/blog/corner/richard-dawkins-eating-human-meat-cannibalism-taboo/
Missouri has prohibited producers of meat alternatives, such as lab-grown/cultured meat and plant-based fake meats, from using the term "meat" to describe products not derived from harvested livestock or poultry:
On Tuesday, Missouri becomes the first state in the country to have a law on the books that prohibits food makers to use the word "meat" to refer to anything other than animal flesh. This takes aim at manufacturers of what has been dubbed fake or non-traditional meat. Clean meat -- also known as lab-grown meat -- is made of cultured animal tissue cells, while plant-based meat is generally from ingredients such as soy, tempeh and seitan.
The state law forbids "misrepresenting a product as meat that is not derived from harvested production livestock or poultry." Violators may be fined $1,000 and imprisoned for a year.
[...] The Missouri Cattlemen's Association, which worked to get the state law passed, has cited shopper confusion and protecting local ranchers as reasons for the legislation. "The big issue was marketing with integrity and...consumers knowing what they're getting," said Missouri Cattlemen's Association spokesman Mike Deering. "There's so much unknown about this."
Turtle Island Foods, which makes "Tofurky", has sued the state:
A new law in Mississippi(1) makes it illegal to refer to plant and cell-culture based patties as 'burgers'.
The law would also prohibit the use of "burger" or "dog" in relation to vat-grown, cell-based food, which is made of meat. The statute reserves these appelations for foodstuffs derived from "slaughtered livestock."
The law has naturally been challenged by parties such as the Good Food Institute and the American Civil Liberties Union among others. In a nutshell
The contention on the meat industry side is:
Mike McCormick, president of the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation: "This bill will protect our cattle farmers from having to compete with products not harvested from an animal."
The contention on the other side is:
"There's nothing misleading about the name of a veggie burger, or vegan hot dog, or seitan bacon," Almy, a lawyer on the Missouri case, told me. "The packages clearly disclose that this is plant-based food that has the taste or texture of this familiar food."
A typical American would likely fall somewhere between these two views.
I fully understand (and at times enjoy) 'veggie burgers', however I had to look up 'seitan bacon' (FYI - a traditional Japanese wheat based food that is meat-like) and would not have known what it was at a glance (does super-seitan bacon go to 9000 calories?)
So where do patrons of Soylent Words-Related-to-Current-Happenings fall on this one?
(1) - Note TFA bounces between Missouri and Mississippi actions. There are similar labeling laws in both states. SB 627 in Missouri and SB 2922 in Mississippi.
Related: U.S. Cattlemen's Association Wants an Official Definition of "Meat"
Regulation Coming to Lab-Grown Meat
Plant-based burgers are "ultra-processed" like dog food, meat-backed ads say
A public-relations firm backed by meat producers has unleashed a savage marketing campaign that claims plant-based meat alternatives are unhealthy, "ultra-processed imitations" similar to dog food.
The campaign rolled out in recent weeks from the industry-funded firm Center for Consumer Freedom, according to The New York Times. So far, it has included full-page ads and opinion pieces in mainstream newspapers, including The New York Times, USA Today, and The Wall Street Journal. All the marketing material raises health concerns about trendy meat alternatives, such as the Impossible Burger and Beyond Burger.
One ad posed the question "What's hiding in your plant-based meat?" Another directed readers to take the quiz "Veggie Burger or Dog Food?"
In an op-ed, the managing director of the Center for Consumer Freedom, Will Coggin, labeled meat alternatives as "ultra-processed" foods and noted that a recent study led by the researchers at the National Institutes of Health linked ultra-processed foods to weight gain.
The negative marketing campaign comes amid soaring popularity of meat alternatives, which threaten to slice into the meat market's sales and profits. In recent months, big players in the meat industry had tried a different—some might say hypocritical—tactic to compete with the new comers—that is, they released their own lines of meat alternatives. Now, the industry wants consumers to think such alternatives are unhealthy.
Older stories:
Previously: U.S. Cattlemen's Association Wants an Official Definition of "Meat"
Regulation Coming to Lab-Grown Meat
FDA Approves Impossible Burger "Heme" Ingredient; Still Wants to Regulate "Cultured Meat"
Missouri Regulates Use of the Word "Meat" by Food Producers
Following IPO of Beyond Meat, Tyson Foods Plans Launch of its Own Meatless Products
Mississippi Bans Calling Plant and Cultured-Meat Patties 'Burgers'Related: Cargill, Bill Gates, Richard Branson Backed Memphis Meats Expects Meat From Cells in Stores by 2021
FDA May Force Rebranding of Soy, Almond, et al. "Milks"
Meatless "Beyond Burgers" Come to Fast Food Restaurants
Beef Trimmings Dubbed 'Pink SLIME' Can Now be Labelled 'Ground Beef'
No Need to Cut Down Red and Processed Meat, Study Says
(Score: 2) by black6host on Monday May 14 2018, @04:08AM (3 children)
I think the fact that the stem cells are animal in nature would preclude such a product from being considered vegan. Serum from the blood of calf fetuses is just the satanic dressing on it all :)
(Score: 3, Interesting) by takyon on Monday May 14 2018, @04:13AM (2 children)
Oops, wtf. A better way to say it would be "still requires some degree of animal suffering", even though it is on par with abortion which many would support.
The thing about the serum has been mentioned since the lab-grown burger was first showed off. They could probably replace it with something else or culture that substance as well, and just haven't gone around to doing or talking about it.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 14 2018, @10:40AM (1 child)
Using a produce of a living cow means a cow still has to graze, drink water, fart methane, etc. for it to be obtained! This is just one additional complicating step which only arguably lightens human conscience because it allegedly doesn't mess up with bovine central nervous system, although mother cow most probably is NOT happy about humans leeching blood from her unborn calf. Until this lab meat can be grown without constantly feeding it anything from another living, or recently departed animal, it is pretty much pointless.
(Score: 4, Informative) by takyon on Monday May 14 2018, @11:26AM
The fetal serum was required to make that demo lab-grown burger years ago, but companies will find (or have already found) a replacement:
http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2017/07/why_is_fetal_cow_blood_used_to_grow_fake_meat.html [slate.com]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JUST,_Inc.#Cultured_(Clean)_Meat [wikipedia.org]
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 14 2018, @04:54AM (5 children)
Seriously, people.
This is not "meat" as the guy in the street would understand it. As much as people whinge and wring their hands and pout about the importance of branding, that has not sunk a variety of other things (unless quorn has vanished since the last time I was in the supermarket, and tofurkey).
So name it something that people will not find to be deceptive.
"Cultured meat" would be honest, straightforward, comprehensible and even sound sane.
Of course, marketers might want to call it Nyumeet. Screw 'em.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by takyon on Monday May 14 2018, @05:43AM (4 children)
It's meat.
Maybe you're alluding to the lab-grown burger, which was made completely of small strands of muscle cells put together, but with no fat cells, like 100% lean ground beef. And that will probably remain one of the easiest forms of lab-grown meat to manufacture. But it is possible that they will figure out how to make real "cuts" with fat and even bone in the right places. In the short term, they will be able to produce something that is indistinguishable from lean ground beef, unlike the many vegetarian meat imitations out there. Something like the Impossible Burger [wikipedia.org] is the closest to actually getting into an uncanny valley of non-meat. But lab-grown/cultured meat is meat, just like 96% lean ground beef or some kind of McD's/Taco Bell pink slime mix is.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 14 2018, @11:50AM (2 children)
I'll be happy to consider that meat. But I don't consider most sausages as meat not even if they have some muscle cells somewhere.
So hopefully they can draw a suitable line where something meets the standards for meat that most people would agree with :).
(Score: 3, Interesting) by takyon on Monday May 14 2018, @12:03PM (1 child)
https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/food-safety-education/get-answers/food-safety-fact-sheets/meat-preparation/sausages-and-food-safety/ct_index [usda.gov]
... and so on. The USDA standards can be pretty permissive compared to your view. Cultured meat could slot in there easily by defining the muscle cells as the main meat content and respecting applicable fat limits while containing no byproducts (so it could easily beat a lot of sausages in quality terms).
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 14 2018, @06:01PM
You should mention that meat is required. It's not enough to limit byproducts.
That brings us back to the definition of "meat"...
There is a labeling requirements guide [usda.gov], which contained this:
I'll research that later (probably not), but I don't expect to find a definition of "lab meat".
(Score: 2) by driverless on Monday May 14 2018, @03:54PM
It's meant, it's not meat, no it is meat, I haven't seen this much beating the meat since I don't know when. You don't need to choke a chicken to play with real meat, or even spank a monkey, whether your meat missile is grown or cultured shouldn't make any difference. No need to be a jerkoff about it.
(Score: 2) by captain normal on Monday May 14 2018, @05:01AM (8 children)
Cause it isn't going to be green, who would eat green meat? I myself would have to be real hungry before I would be eating any Soylent Red. I'd be eating rice and beans and if I couldn't get beef from my usual sources, I'd be eating fish I catch in the ocean, chickens I raise in my yard, wild pig I or my friends get on our yearly wild pig hunt, or small game and the occasional deer that I manage to hunt down. Also the chickens give more eggs than we can eat. Glad I don't live in a big city where you have to eat whatever some Mac Company serves up.
When life isn't going right, go left.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by arslan on Monday May 14 2018, @05:42AM (2 children)
My mate whom I've known for 20 years since college, started a fish farm about 10 years ago in a south east asian country - which I will not name. Fish is a very popular food in Asia. From what my mate tells me, I would avoid any fish from said country, and any 3rd world asian country, including his and he himself does as much. It is a race to the bottom in terms of price and the insane demands of the asian consumer wanting it cheap and in abundance. The industry feed the fishies shit/feces and in fish farms overpacked and rife with diseases. If you see any fish in your super market chain where it is imported from a 3rd world asian country, caveat emptor.
I would definitely eat lab grown fish meat if that was the only alternative to fishies from such farms. If it taste and smell like fish and doesn't have any health side-effects, I don't see a problem with it.
(Score: 4, Funny) by c0lo on Monday May 14 2018, @07:49AM (1 child)
Until then, may I interest you in some escargots?
Those bastards seem to have quite a high rate of conversion of the plants on my veggies patch into their meat.
Fortunately, unlike other animals, one doesn't need to run fast to muster them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by arslan on Monday May 14 2018, @11:18PM
You're trying to be funny, but seriously I eat a lot of them growing up in asia, or at least a variation of them, we call them balitong [christmasrecipes.website], whenever I can afford it of course. We stir fry them. Yum yum.
(Score: 5, Informative) by takyon on Monday May 14 2018, @06:06AM (4 children)
The demand for meat is increasing worldwide, and particularly in places like India [livekindly.co]. Not everybody can live the lifestyle you are living. So the meat industry will be meating that growing consumer demand [worldwatch.org] (it ain't shrinking despite the apparent popularity [nytimes.com] of veganism). Lab-grown meat offers a number of potential benefits over livestock:
It remains to be seen whether lab-grown meat will become cheaper than meat from livestock.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 14 2018, @07:45AM
FTFY
Huh! I'll give you some DNA from the pond-slime, make yourself some meat of that.
(Score: 2) by acid andy on Monday May 14 2018, @08:51AM (2 children)
Nooo, why the fuck are they adopting a more western diet? Indian food is so much nicer! I would have hoped that the religious underpinnings of vegetarianism in India would have inspired a moral code as well but it sounds like that hasn't been passed on to the next generation. It's odd the stats changed that quickly though -- I'd like to see a graph but haven't found one yet.
If a cat has kittens, does a rat have rittens, a bat bittens and a mat mittens?
(Score: 3, Informative) by takyon on Monday May 14 2018, @10:17AM
Although your concerns may be valid, it should be noted that India has not been monolithic when it comes to meat:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_cuisine#Regional_cuisines [wikipedia.org]
https://tableagent.com/article/an-overview-of-indias-regional-cuisines/ [tableagent.com]
https://www.tripsavvy.com/indian-food-guide-1539819 [tripsavvy.com]
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 14 2018, @09:09PM
Meat has been commonly eaten by non-Hindus in Kerala for over a thousand years.
Also, religions often do not have moral codes. Religions have doctrine that states what is sacred and what is taboo. Moral codes are for individuals that think for themselves.
(Score: 4, Funny) by Gaaark on Monday May 14 2018, @10:24AM (2 children)
"Cow says moooooo!, honey. Now eat your processed invitro non-vegan meta-beef."
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 2) by kazzie on Monday May 14 2018, @11:45AM
"Don't worry, sir, I'll be very humane."
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 15 2018, @12:54AM
I'm willing to bet that this meat is very popular with millennial vegans.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 14 2018, @04:08PM (1 child)
There were pretty serious concerns that producers of margarine would be able to pass off their product as butter, not the least that all kinds of random shit used to go into it.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Monday May 14 2018, @07:10PM
Why would the government want to regulate food? Aren't Republicans against any and all kind of regulation of corporations no matter the result?
Trying to regulate meat, while not regulating the environment seems just a wee tad bit hypocritical.
Why all of a sudden would it matter what the 99% eat as their daily meat-like substitute?
To transfer files: right-click on file, pick Copy. Unplug mouse, plug mouse into other computer. Right-click, paste.
(Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Monday May 14 2018, @07:58PM
I've been looking forward to this going mainstream since first hearing about it almost a decade ago. If done correctly, this could scale massively and produce large quantities of lean, uniform animal protein with zero suffering to any actual animals.
I'm one of those people who doesn't care much for specific cuts of meat and consumes most of hers in ground form as part of a curry or stew, so even if this only ever becomes good for making the equivalent of 95% lean ground turkey, that's perfectly fine for me. Chilli, soups, meatballs, croquettes, curries and so forth are what I'd make from this.
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...