Cloned meat, would you eat it?

[Ellainix]

I bet cloned meat will never be available because so very few people will initially buy it.

[skevosmavros]

Ethically / morally I would have no problem with it.  In fact I would see such a development as beneficial for human health and even the planet, given the energy and resources used and waste produced in the meat industry.

I will make a prediction - cloned or "vat grown" meat will face STIFFER health regulations than butchered meat due to its newness and a general "eww" factor amongst regulators, despite the production path of butchered meat being at least as "eww" if not more so -- even for many meat eaters when they look into it.

But would I eat it?  Probably not, because if it is, as you say, identical to the "real thing", then I would probably dislike the taste, smell, and texture of it.  I have lost the desire for real meat after 20+ years as a vegetarian - I recently cooked some mince for my godson (the things I do for love) and to my surprise I found myself literally gagging at the smell.

But my vegetarian wife says she is counting the days to when she can eat pork again, but without ethical issues.  We shall see...

[Thumpalumpacus]

I'm thoroughly omnivorous.  I drive by a farm, the animals run for cover.

[Tank]

I bet cloned meat will never be available because so very few people will initially buy it.

Well on the basis of the reception on this thread and at RatSkep and Tweb I don't think that would be the case. Of those people who have responded nobody has objected except where they feel meat is bad for one full stop.

The issue of uptake will probably be down to a number of things.

The initial cost brought about by amortising research costs and production set up.
Taste, texture and perceived quality.

IF the production precess is fundamentally cheaper than that of the current product then it will undoubtedly find a niche in the market, there is always a place for the cheapest product, it's a simply perceived primary selling feature. Of course what the producer will want to do is what some beer producers do, they up sell the image of a beer so it carries a larger premium on its selling price than its actual production cost reflects. Stella is a classic case of this, it's one of the most expensive lagers to buy but one of the cheapest to produce! You gotta love marketing!  So the job the marketeers will face is to up sell features like safety (no mad cow disease), effectively vegetarian, no animals were harmed in its production, better for the environment (if it is), always consistent, a premium low fat product, while down playing the 'synthetic' aspect of the product.

While the initial uptake of a product is important it is not the whole story. Consider the car, TV and PC. All had tiny initial uptake and entered the market via niche routes but how many households now have all three and how many of those that don't own all three still aspire to owning all three?

IF the production process is fundamentally more costly than that of the current product then it will a more difficult secondary feature/benefit sell. Based on what has been said here and elsewhere the initial target market could well be vegetarians, which is almost counter intuitive!

So we will have to wait and see.

[Tank]

Ethically / morally I would have no problem with it.  In fact I would see such a development as beneficial for human health and even the planet, given the energy and resources used and waste produced in the meat industry.

I will make a prediction - cloned or "vat grown" meat will face STIFFER health regulations than butchered meat due to its newness and a general "eww" factor amongst regulators, despite the production path of butchered meat being at least as "eww" if not more so -- even for many meat eaters when they look into it.

But would I eat it?  Probably not, because if it is, as you say, identical to the "real thing", then I would probably dislike the taste, smell, and texture of it.  I have lost the desire for real meat after 20+ years as a vegetarian - I recently cooked some mince for my godson (the things I do for love) and to my surprise I found myself literally gagging at the smell.

But my vegetarian wife says she is counting the days to when she can eat pork again, but without ethical issues.  We shall see...

I think your FDA testing issue is quite true, as a 'synthetic' product and the first of its type it would undoubtedly come under very intense scrutiny.

[karadan]

I've always wanted to eat vat grown meat.

That's a firm yes from me.

[curiosityandthecat]

So, an unlimited font of beefy goodness? I'm in. Wonder if it'll be as good as Hufu...

[parrotpirate]

If it looked like meat, smelled like meat, and got all nice and brown when it was grilled, you bet I would!