VOA科学技术2023--US Approves Chicken Meat Grown in a Laboratory

US Approves Chicken Meat Grown in a Laboratory¹

U.S. government officials have approved meat that is grown from cells in a laboratory to be sold in restaurants and food stores.

Companies have been developing "lab-grown" meat for years. But the California-based companies Upside Foods and Good Meat are the first to have their products approved by the Department of Agriculture. Chicken is the only "lab-grown" meat permitted in the United States. However, lab-grown meat from cattle, pigs and sheep might be available soon.

Supporters of lab-grown meat say it does not require killing² or hurting animals. They also say it reduces the effects that feeding animals and animal waste have on the environment.

Production of meat grown in a laboratory begins by taking cells from fertilized³ eggs. The cells are combined with nutrients⁴ that support their growth in steel tanks.

Upside Foods's lab-grown meat is created in large sheets, which are then formed into final products. Good Meat transforms cells into several chicken products. The company's products are already available in Singapore, the first country to permit lab-grown meat.

Lab-grown meat is different from plant-based meat such as Impossible Burgers. Those products are made from plant materials. Researchers consider lab-grown meat to be "real" meat.

Company representatives say the lab grown chicken seems like real meat.

Amy Chen is Upside Foods's chief operating officer. She told the Associated Press: "The most common response we get is, ‘Oh, it tastes like chicken.'"

However, lab-grown meat is very costly⁵, so it will not be available in grocery stores any time soon. Restaurants are expected to begin serving "lab-grown" meat within two to five years. Experts say it might be available in supermarkets in seven to 10 years.

Both companies have stated that lab-grown meat production will be limited in the coming years. For example, Upside Foods can produce about 22,680 kilograms of lab-grown meat a year. For comparison⁶, the Department of Agriculture says the U.S. produced about 27 billion kilograms of chicken in 2021.

Officials expect the price of lab-grown meat to be about $44 per kilogram. Critics argue that, at such a high price, only rich people will be able to purchase lab-grown meat.

Ricardo San Martin is director of the Alt: Meat Lab, part of the University of California, Berkeley. Martin told the Associated Press: "If some high-end or affluent⁷ people want to eat this instead of a chicken, it's good." Then he added, "Will that mean you will feed chicken to poor people? I honestly don't see it."

Martin said he is concerned that if only a small number of people eat lab-grown meat, it will have little effect on the environment.

Words in This Story

sheet – n. a thin, flat, usually rectangular⁸ piece of some substance

high-end – adj. (marketing) more costly than similar products

response – n. an act or instance⁹ of replying; answer

 

affluent –adj. rich; wealthy; having a lot of money and owning many things

1 laboratory   

n.实验室，化验室

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a laboratory.她捐款成立了一个实验室。
• Our laboratory equipment isn't perfect,but we must make do.实验室设备是不够理想，但我们只好因陋就简。

2 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

3 Fertilized   

v.施肥( fertilize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The study of psychology has recently been widely cross-fertilized by new discoveries in genetics. 心理学研究最近从遗传学的新发现中受益匪浅。
• Flowers are often fertilized by bees as they gather nectar. 花常在蜜蜂采蜜时受粉。

4 nutrients   

n.（食品或化学品）营养物，营养品( nutrient的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lack of essential nutrients 基本营养的缺乏
• Nutrients are absorbed into the bloodstream. 营养素被吸收进血液。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

6 comparison   

n.比较，对照；比拟，比喻

参考例句：

• They make a comparison of New York to a beehive.他们把纽约比作一个蜂巢。
• This dress is really cheaper by comparison.比较起来，这件衣服确实便宜。

7 affluent   

adj.富裕的，富有的，丰富的，富饶的

参考例句：

• He hails from an affluent background.他出身于一个富有的家庭。
• His parents were very affluent.他的父母很富裕。

8 rectangular   

adj.矩形的，成直角的

参考例句：

• He put a rectangular box on the table.他把一个长方形的箱子放在桌子上。
• The equations are written in rectangular coordinates.这些方程是在直角座标系中写出的。

9 instance   

n.例，例证，实例

参考例句：

• Can you quote me a recent instance?你能给我举一个最近的例子吗？
• He's a greedy boy,yesterday,for instance,he ate all our biscuits!他是个贪吃的孩子――比如，他昨天把我们的饼干都吃了！