In focus: Clean Meat
Introduction
- Clean meat or synthetic meat or lab-grown meat is a term used for transgenic meat prepared ex-vivo in the laboratory.
- The stem cells taken out of the body of the animals are cultured in a petri dish giving rise to cell-based cultured meat.
Advantages
- Equivalent
- Clean meat is equivalent to its conventional counterpart in terms of nutrition, taste, smell and texture.
- Animal welfare
- Because of the difference in production technique, clean meat can end animal slaughter and thus ensure animal welfare.
- Reduces carbon foot print
- Clean meat requires far less resources compared to animal rearing including land, water, fodder etc and thus reducing carbon footprint.
- Fight anti-biotic resistance
- Clean meat can completely ward of rampant use of anti-biotics used in animal rearing and thus help fight antibiotic resistance.
- Fortification of food
- Lab-cultured meat can further be genetically modified to augment its nutritional content and thus help in food fortification.
- Waste management
- Clean meat eliminates the need for waste management that is a major area of concern in slaughter houses.
- Food security
- Clean meat is potential solution for nutritional security of population.
- Fight Climate change
- By significantly reducing methane emissions in animal rearing, clean meat can alleviate climate change to some extent.
- Sustainable food systems
- By creating a source for affordable proteins, clean meat holds potential for sustainable food system.
Section : Science & Tech
