Would you eat this lab-grown 'beef rice'?

Would you eat this bowl of 'beef rice'?

South Korean researchers have succeeded in growing beef cells in rice grains, which they say could become a sustainable alternative source of protein that can replace farming cattle for meat.

Professor Jinkee Hong said, "The rice grains you see now have a uniform distribution of both muscle and fat cells throughout their surface and interior, paving the way for the development of future food sources."

Professor Jinkee Hong of Yonsei University in Seoul says the "beef rice" is the first of its kind using grain particles as the base for cultivating animal muscle and fat cells.

Here's how it works.

Rice grains are first treated with enzymes to create an optimal environment for cell growth.

Then, they are infused with cultivated bovine cells.

The result is a pinkish hybrid beef rice that contains approximately 8% more protein and 7% more fat than conventional rice.

And the taste is also different.

"In addition to a slight beefy flavour then followed by a taste of plant-based protein, there's also a subtle buttery creamy taste, and furthermore, there's a slight dryness. In my personal experience, it has the characteristic of leaving a lingering aftertaste."

The Yonsei team is not the first to try and bring lab-grown meat products to the table.

Companies around the world have launched cultivated meat.

But Hong's team says rice represents a uniquely safe base to cultivate animal cells relative to soy or nuts, because of a far lower incidence of allergy.

Priced at roughly $2 per kilogram and with a far smaller carbon footprint, Hong says cultured beef rice can potentially compete with traditional beef products.

But he says challenges remain not only from a technical standpoint but also in winning over customers with the right flavour and texture.

Potential customers agree.

"Developing beef rice seems like quite an innovative idea, but honestly, I don't think it can replicate the juiciness or texture of real beef."

"Now it does not compare to beef yet but as I see the researchers' early stages, so I would say it's a great way forward.”

Reuters