A bioengineer at Tel Aviv University “is midway through an experiment that could end in a recipe for the world’s first lab-grown chicken breast,” says Civil Eats. “If all goes according to plan, no chickens will be harmed in the process.” The researcher, Amit Gefen, says artificially created meat could be a viable alternative in the future if land, water and animal feed become too expensive or scarce.
“The process begins with a single chicken cell harvested from a living animal,” writes Leilani Clark. “With stimulation, the muscle cell divides into millions. Those cells are incubated in a serum made from collagen, though Gefen is searching out non-animal alternatives. Soon, the cells fuse together, forming muscle fibers.”
Gefen isn’t the first to try petri-dish meat, says Civil Eats. A lab-created hamburger patty appeared in 2013 to mixed reviews. At present, laboratory meat is far more expensive than the farm-raised kind.