±«Óătv

Are we getting closer to eating lab-grown meat?

child eating at a kitchen tableImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Would you eat meat that has been grown in a lab?

An organisation is currently looking into how safe lab-grown food could be for humans to eat.

In the UK, we already allow lab-grown food to be given to pets, but it hasn't been approved for humans to eat yet.

However, tests by the food safety watchdog - which is an organisation that makes sure the food we have in the UK is safe to eat - could mean that we're getting closer to having lab-grown meat on our plates.

What do you think? Would you eat lab-grown food? Let us know in the comments.

What is lab-grown food, and how is it made?

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

This lab-grown chicken was sold at a restaurant in California in the USA

Food made in a 'lab' (short for laboratory, which is usually a room or building used for scientific tests) is called a CCP, which stands for cell cultivated product.

It basically means any type of food that is made without using normal farming methods.

Every living thing is made up of cells. Cells of animals or plants are grown and multiplied in a lab, to create larger amounts of food.

We already have made pet food in a lab, but currently in the UK there aren't any CCPs for humans.

What's the point of lab-grown food?

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Farming animals like cows can have an impact on the environment

Lab-grown meat is aimed at people who want to live a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle but still want to eat meat without having to harm animals in the process.

A vegetarian is someone who doesn't eat meat, and a vegan is someone who doesn't eat any products from an animal, which would include things like dairy products and eggs.

There are some arguments that growing meat in a lab is more sustainable than farming animals. This is because a large amount of food grown in the UK is used to feed animals that are then used for meat.

Also, looking after the animals on farms can create large amounts of carbon dioxide and methane, which increase climate change.

However, because it is currently quite difficult to make, lab-grown food could end up being expensive, and harder to get than regular food.

What do you think? Would you eat lab-grown food? Let us know in the comments.