Meat of the future | Lab-grown KFC nuggets?
KFC creates Meat of the future
KFC in Russia is taking the next step in its innovative concept of creating a ‘restaurant of the future’ by launching the development of innovative 3D bioprinting technology to create chicken meat in cooperation with the 3D Bioprinting Solutions research laboratory. The idea of crafting the ‘meat of the future’ arose among partners in response to the growing popularity of a healthy lifestyle and nutrition, the annual increase in demand for alternatives to traditional meat and the need to develop more environmentally friendly methods of food production. The project aims to create the world’s first laboratory-produced chicken nuggets. They will be as close as possible in both taste and appearance to the original KFC product, while being more environmentally friendly to produce than ordinary meat. Receiving a final product for testing is already planned for this fall (2020) in Moscow.
Back in 2018 we wrote about JUST Meat and JUST Egg. JUST Meat was creating nuggets from chicken cells as well. At this moment we can only trace back JUST Egg so we think they didn’t have the means to stay in business till their product was approved. Lots of scientists believed this meat created from a single cell is one of the solutions for the environmental problems we are addressing at this moment. They also believe lab-grown meat will hit the market in the coming 5 years.
Meat of the future | Nuggets bioprinted with the use of chicken cells and plant material
3D Bioprinting Solutions is developing additive bioprinting technology using chicken cells and plant material, allowing it to reproduce the taste and texture of chicken meat almost without involving animals in the process. KFC will provide its partner with all of the necessary ingredients, such as breading and spices, to achieve the signature KFC taste. KFC indicated that at this moment, there are no other methods available on the market that could allow the creation of such complex products from animal cells.
The bioprinting method has several advantages. Biomeat has exactly the same microelements as the original product, while excluding various additives that are used in traditional farming and animal husbandry, creating a cleaner final product. Cell-based meat products are also more ethical – the production process does not cause any harm to animals. Along with that, KFC remains committed to continuous improvement in animal welfare from the farm and through all aspects of our supply chain, including raising, handling, transportation and processing.
Growing meat from cells has a minimal negative impact on the environment
Also, according to a study by the American Environmental Science & Technology Journal, the technology of growing meat from cells has minimal negative impact on the environment, allowing energy consumption to be cut by more than half, greenhouse gas emissions to be reduced 25 fold and 100 times less land to be used than traditional farm-based meat production.
“At KFC, we are closely monitoring all of the latest trends and innovations and doing our best to keep up with the times by introducing advanced technologies to our restaurant networks. Crafted meat products are the next step in the development of our ‘restaurant of the future’ concept. Our experiment in testing 3D bioprinting technology to create chicken products can also help address several looming global problems. We are glad to contribute to its development and are working to make it available to thousands of people in Russia and, if possible, around the world”, says Raisa Polyakova, General Manager of KFC Russia & CIS.
“3D bioprinting technologies, initially widely recognized in medicine, are nowadays gaining popularity in producing foods such as meat. In the future, the rapid development of such technologies will allow us to make 3D-printed meat products more accessible and we are hoping that the technology created as a result of our cooperation with KFC will help accelerate the launch of cell-based meat products on the market”, says Yusef Khesuani, co-founder and Managing Partner of 3D Bioprinting Solutions.
Scientists all over the world are working hard on solutions that would allow stable food provision for the growing global population while reducing the negative impact on the environment. The use of technologies based on 3D bioprinting may become a promising field in this area.
Bron: KFC Global
