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Brooklyn May Become A Test Tube Meat Mecca
By
Ben Yakas
Published Jan 26, 2014
Modified Jan 26, 2014
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Jan 26, 2014
Modified Jan 26, 2014
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Last month, it was reported that human beings are eating more meat than ever. It ain't easy keeping up with that kind of demand—but thankfully, Big Science has been hard at work coming up with a possible solution. A biotech firm is working on growing edible meat in test tubes, and they want to make Brooklyn their headquarters.
According to Crain's, tissue-engineering company Modern Meadow is in negotiations to lease up to 10,000 square feet at the BioBAT facility at the Brooklyn Army Terminal. Initially, the company hopes to grow "genuine leather without having to kill animals or wreck the environment," generated by harmless biopsies of living animals.
While the company is already in talks with fashion and textile producers about their products, Modern Meadow is also excited about working on creating in-vitro meat. Chief Executive Andras Forgacs thinks the company will begin offering "tastings" in a few years, and will work with chefs to introduce the company's products as a 'delicacy.'
Scientists have already proven that meat can be grown in a test tube (here's an in-depth article from NPR about it), but as of two years ago, they were still trying to figure out if such a thing is commercially feasible. Forgacs obviously believes in it; he's even hoping to turn the company's offices into "a leather and meat brewery" that would be the antithesis of a slaughterhouse, educating people about the in-vitro process.
Considering the fact that 10 billion animals are killed per year in the US, and factory farming of livestock produces 18% of global greenhouse-gas emissions, investing in test tube meat seems like a good idea. And anyway, at this point anything would be better than pink slimeburgers.
Tagged
brooklyn
in-vitro meat
meat
modern meadow
science
test tube meat
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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