Future Of The Big Mac: Implications For The World's First Lab-Grown Burger

On Monday, August 5, 2013, the world's first synthetic hamburger was tasted in London, England. The artificial slice of beef was the result of three months of laboratory work and an investment of 250 thousand Euros from Google's co-founder, Sergey Brin, who stated that he financed the project in the interest of animal welfare.

The Process

Dr. Mark Post, a physiologist at Maastricht University and the researcher behind the project, engineered the product by harvesting muscle stem cells from a cow. Over the course of three months, the stem cells were immersed in a culture of modified calf blood to develop into no fewer than 20 thousand muscle fibers. The fibers were then extracted and pressed together to create the first synthetic burger. The result was beef biologically identical to that acquired from a cow, yet entirely grown in artificial laboratory conditions.

Animal Welfare

Brin supported the development of synthetic meat in order for fewer animals to have to be bred for slaughter, releasing the statement that he was "not comfortable" with the way that farms treat livestock. The hormones with which the livestock are injected, furthermore, can become harmful to both the animals and the humans ingesting the chemicals. Brin's investment, if successful, may end up appeasing quite a few animal activists, as well as persuade some vegetarians and vegans to consider putting meat protein back into their diet.

Environmental Implications

In the last century, the earth's atmospheric temperature has risen 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit from factors like industrial development, deforestation, and the emission of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane, the latter of which is particularly detrimental because of its potency. Pollution and gas emission comes not only from cars and factories, however. A significant, yet frequently disregarded, contributor of global warming is in fact the meat industry, which is responsible for 5 percent of carbon dioxide emissions and 40 percent of methane emissions because of supporting livestock. The industry also preys on land and food resources. 30 percent of the planet's useable surface is dedicated exclusively to pastureland. In comparison, only 4 percent of the land is used to directly feed humans. Cows, furthermore, output only 15 grams of edible protein after being fed 100 grams of vegetable protein. In other words, humans must give livestock an enormous amount of food and space in return for a disproportionately small amount of meat.

If the meat industry continues to operate without restriction, it is projected to double in influence by the 2050s. By then, livestock will contribute as much as half the amount of environmental damage as all the world's vehicles and airplanes combined. However, the results of Post's research have shown that artificial meat may be key in helping to maintain the earth's natural resources. By growing meat synthetically rather than breed more animals for it, it is estimated that energy use can be reduced up to 70 percent and the need for land and water reduced up to 90 percent in the foreseeable future. With the explosion of India's population, China's rapid economic development, and the lack of stringent environmental conservation guidelines, widespread synthetic meat may just become a science fictional reality.

Editor's Note: Derek is blogging for GTL DNA, an international genetic testing company. He enjoys offering help on paternity trends, talk about new breakthroughs in DNA testing, and other topics related to genetics.

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