USstudiesshowthatconsumersarewillingto
trylab-basedmeatbutarenotkeentocompletely
replacefarmedmeatwithsyntheticalternatives.
“Consumerscontinuetohavea strongdesire
fortraditionalproteins,”saysLisaSharp,MLA
chiefmarketingandcommunicationsofficer.“They
arevoicingconcernsabouteatingFrankenfoods.
Consumerswantnatural,unadulteratedfood.”
Priceis anothermajorbarrierforthemoment.
IntheUS,groundbeefcostsaround$7a kilogram
comparedwitharound$5291forlab-grownmeat.
Prohibitivelyexpensive,yes,butperspectiveis
everything:thefirstlab-grownburgercost
$400,000toproduce.
Thepopularityofplant-basedmeatalternatives
suchastheBeyondBurger,which“bleeds”when
cut,andFunkyFieldsmince– nowonyour
localsupermarketshelf– showsthehungerfor
substitutes.Butit maybea conceptualleapto
assumeAustralia’sgrowingtribeofvegetarians
andveganswillembracetheartificialproduct.
“Vegansareaninterestingbunch,”says
ShannonMartinez,co-ownerandchefof
MelbourneveganrestaurantSmith&Daughters,
whoseprocessformaking“chicken”nuggets
involvestofu,wheatprotein,soyanda laborious
amountoftime.“Thefactthatthey’retakingcells
fromanimalsmightbeenoughtomakethem
rejectit.I’mallforit butI’mgoingtohaveto
reallytalktoourcustomersif it’sgoingtofly.”
Thetimelineforbeingabletositdowntoan
eveningmealofspagbolmadewithmotherless
minceis notyetcertain.Just,thecreatorsofthose
chickennuggets,saytheywillbeonthemarket
byyear’send.Othersarenotsosure.Morethan
25 companiesgloballyarepursuingthecommercial
applicationsofcell-basedmeat,withthreeofthose
inAustralia.Thewaygovernmentsrespondwillplay
itspart,saysKing.“Thetimelinedependsonkey
decisions.It comesdowntowhichgovernments
wanttotaketheopportunitytoapproachit.”
Soonerorlater,regulatorswillbefacedwith
multiplechallenges:cananimalfleshproducedina
labactuallybecalledmeat?Whathappenswhenthe
nutrientprofileis engineeredwithextraomega-3
fattyacidsandfewersaturatedfats?Andwhatabout
lab-grownmilk,eggs,collagenandgelatine?
Diners,preparetomeetthynuggets.Butas
forthatsteak:“It’sobviouslygoingtobea greater
challengethancreatingburgersandsausages,”
says King. “We’ll get there one day.”●Imitation Game
GOURMET TRAVELLER 69