(30 Oct 2018) LEADIN:
Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
A food tech lab in California is developing lab-grown chicken nuggets using stem cells from a chicken wing, leaving the bird intact.
STORYLINE:
This young girl is eating a regular chicken nugget at a McDonald's restaurant. It's a food consumed by millions around the globe.
Now, a food technology lab says it's developing lab-grown chicken nuggets that do not involve slaughtering chickens.
A chicken's stem cells are combined with plant-based proteins, from sources like mung beans, to help create a taste and texture similar to chicken.
"Today, with the world as it is, with growing populations, with pressure on our water systems, on our land. We need a better way. A cleaner way, a safer way," says Joshua Tetrick, CEO of Just.
"And we thought the idea of providing people the meat that they love without killing the animal, without all the land and the resources, might be a good path to help us eat better in the future."
An independent chef from nearby Marin County is sampling the nugget. He says it tastes just like chicken.
He says he was especially impressed with the similar texture of the product.
"The flavour's delicious," says chef Jason Hull.
"The texture is spot on, and that's not easy to do, right? And - like I said - I didn't miss the real thing, you know? This is all plant-based, it's healthy. I know it's healthier for the planet. I know it's healthier for me and healthier for our communities."
One of the biggest challenges San Francisco-based Just Food faces right now is making lab-grown chicken affordable.
It currently costs about $100 USD to create a pound of the meat.
But, the company's CEO claims that when they ramp up production, the nuggets will eventually be just as affordable as regular chicken.
"This only matters when the world gets to a place where an everyday person can go into an everyday grocery store and the core option is the one that is healthier, more sustainable, the one that didn't even require touching or even looking at an animal," says Tetrick.
"When it gets there, then the world changes. Until that, we're still in the early days of making this work, but we're getting closer."
If all goes as planned, Just hopes to release its chicken products to stores next year.
They've already launched a line of egg-and-dairy-free mayonnaise products and a plant-based egg substitute.
Both are currently available in stores worldwide.
Just also plans to produce lab-grown beef and fish in the future in an effort to further reduce the environmental cost of raising meat
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