laboratory meat production; Opportunities and challenges of a table revolution

In a new study, researchers investigated the engineering processes of meat production in controlled laboratory conditions and explained the effective role of this innovative technology in curbing environmental crises and the transformation of the food production system, along with examining its challenges.

In recent decades, the significant growth of the world's population, the rapid expansion of urbanization, severe climate changes and increasing pressures on natural resources have revealed the need for a fundamental review of food supply methods. In the meantime, although traditional animal husbandry plays the main role in providing animal protein and vital nutrients including essential amino acids, vitamins and mineral salts, it has a great contribution to the destruction of the environment. This method is a major consumer of water resources and agricultural land and is responsible for more than 14% of the world's total greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, the crisis of global warming, severe reduction of water resources, water and soil pollution, as well as the spread of common diseases between humans and animals, have endangered the sustainability of traditional methods and doubled the need for a fundamental transformation.

On the other hand, dependence on long-term livestock breeding cycles and severe price fluctuations in the market have raised the need to find new and sustainable alternatives. Natural meat has a complex structure consisting of muscle cells, fat cells, blood vessels and connective tissues that determine its final quality. Relying on modern science and technology, cellular agriculture has been introduced as a smart solution; An approach in which instead of breeding and killing a whole animal, only the primary cells are separated from the body of the living organism and propagated in completely controlled and hygienic laboratory conditions and turned into edible meat to obtain healthier food with far less environmental damage.

In this regard, Rehane Khajazadeh from the Student Research and Technology Committee of Kerman University of Medical Sciences and Health Services, along with three of her fellow researchers and with the cooperation of researchers from Golestan University of Medical Sciences and Health Services and Zanjan University of Medical Sciences and Health Services, have started a comprehensive research work. In their research, these researchers have explored the process of meat production in a laboratory environment as a fundamental step towards a sustainable transformation in the food production system in order to clearly explain the scientific and practical paths of this technology.

The researchers used a review and analytical method to achieve their goals. They investigated the technical processes of making laboratory meat, including how to isolate and grow stem cells, design nutritional environments for cell growth, and use containers and biological devices called bioreactors with supporting structures or cellular scaffolds. They also analyzed the challenges related to determining the appropriate type of cell, maintaining nutritional quality, evaluating alternative compounds of animal materials, managing costs and legal barriers, and acceptance by the general public.

According to the results of this research, although scientists have achieved brilliant progress in the field of tissue engineering and cell proliferation, the very high costs of production and the need to achieve growth environments completely without animal derivatives remain important challenges. In addition, maintaining the quality and real value of nutrients and gaining consumer acceptance are key issues in this field.

Also, the lack of specific regulatory and legal frameworks has faced serious obstacles in the process of entering these products into the commercial market. Therefore, achieving mass, sustainable and cheap production of laboratory meat requires the connection between different scientific disciplines such as biotechnology, engineering and social sciences and the expansion of international cooperation between researchers, food industries and legislative institutions in order to gain the trust of the society.

The information presented in this study shows that the world is on the verge of entering a new era called cellular agriculture and moving towards these technologies will bring a great change in the human food basket. Consumption of traditional meats is always known as a risk factor for the occurrence of cardiovascular diseases due to its high amount of saturated fats and cholesterol. Meanwhile, cell culture technology provides the possibility of precise regulation and promotion of micronutrients. However, even though international organizations have emphasized the readiness to enter cell-based technologies into industrial sectors, the inability to completely restore the natural taste and texture of meat and the need to accurately measure the absorption of nutrients in the body requires additional studies on industrial scales and the development of health safety standards.

A scientific research article derived from this research was published in the "Magazine of Jiroft University of Medical Sciences" and its results were made available to researchers, health professionals and food industry activists.