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Lab-grown meat from animal or plant particles offers great eco-futuristic alternatives to the meat industry, which is driving the climate emergency and pollution of the planet to high levels.
However, over the past few years, a news story has emerged that has been widely reported in the media, turning our stomachs with meat synthesised from sewage.
This Japanese invention was to ‘revolutionise science’ by Mitsuyuki Ikeda, a researcher at the Okayama Laboratory, who was commissioned by Tokyo Sewage to tackle the problem of excess sewage sludge. While investigating possible applications of the wastewater, Ikeda discovered a significant protein content in the sludge due to the presence of bacteria.
The team then extracted these proteins, combining them with a reaction enhancer that resulted in the creation of a synthetic or artificial ‘soy-flavoured’ steak. The composition of this ‘meat’ included 63% protein, 25% carbohydrates, 3% lipids and 9% minerals, which was given food colouring to give it a reddish hue, and aestheticise the decadent composition.
The origins of the shit burger
Early taste tests resulted in comments suggesting that it resembled the taste of veal. A dubious status, to say the least, which of course triggered criticism from the sceptic community of this invention that seemed to have its origins in a YouTube video starring Professor Ikeda.
In it, the scientist is shown making it in a lab, involving a number of dubious elements such as a sign in Chinese instead of Japanese and labels on a fridge that read ‘SHIT BURGER’, as analysed by Forbes in 2011.
Salon’s Justin Elliot traced the story back to its origins on YouTube, and found that a wave of almost identical ‘sewage burger’ stories emerged in the 1990s. Once Elliot presented his findings, several news sites admitted they may have been misled, while others such as The Guardian withdrew the articles without explanation. The bottom line is that this is almost certainly yet another hoax supplied by the age of disinformation.