Researchers grow beef cells in rice grains to create nutritious, hybrid food
Researchers in Korea have grown a culture of animal meat and fat inside a "scaffold" of rice, creating what they hope could be an eco-friendly and cheaper alternative to meat.
Cow muscle and fat cells cultured in rice to create a hybrid food.
Cow muscle and fat cells cultured in rice to create a hybrid food. (Yonsei University)
Scientists in Korea are working on creating “cultured beef rice” by growing animal muscle and fat cells inside rice grains. They presented their method on Wednesday and hopes to use it to create a nutritious and flavourful hybrid food that could become a more affordable protein with a smaller carbon footprint.
“Imagine obtaining all the nutrients we need from cell-cultured protein rice. Rice already has a high nutrient level, but adding cells from livestock can further boost it,” said Sohyeon Park, first author of an article published in the journal Cell Press, in a press statement.