Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Neither: why Asia is at the forefront of a lab-grown meat revolution
- Asia is front and centre in efforts to produce high-quality lab-grown protein for sustainability. But chefs are divided over the merits of cultivated meat
The food on the plate in front of me – a chicken skewer resting on a bed of couscous salad – looks entirely everyday. But it is far from ordinary: this is one of the most cutting-edge meals on the planet.
At the bistro in Huber’s Butchery in Singapore resides the answer to the age-old conundrum of which came first, the chicken or the egg: it no longer matters – neither chicken nor egg are required to produce meat.
The chicken on my skewer has been grown in a laboratory. Cells painlessly extracted from one living chicken can be divided over and over again, in theory for eternity.
The process takes place in a bioreactor, which is similar to a fermentation tank, and which provides the warmth and energy needed for growth. The cells are immersed in nutrients similar to those an animal would eat naturally, including amino acids, fats and vitamins.
For a moment, looking down at the plate, I wonder if I have strayed into Frankenstein territory and may become the monster, sprouting extra arms, or perhaps a beak in a surreal twist of chicken’s revenge.
Then I take a bite and it tastes, perhaps unsurprisingly, like chicken: somewhere between the bland flavour of the often freakishly large chicken breasts of factory-farmed birds in the West, and the richer, more umami taste of the corn-fed chickens usually preferred in Asia.
