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South Korean scientists develop sustainable ‘meaty rice’ opening up ‘world of possibilities’
- Researchers at Seoul’s Yonsei University coated grains in fish gelatin to help beef cells latch onto the rice, and left it to culture in a Petri dish for up to 11 days
- The new rice could offer a cheaper and more environmentally sustainable meat alternative and leave a smaller carbon footprint
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Scientists in South Korea have developed a new type of sustainable hybrid food – a “meaty” rice, that they say could help solve food crises and climate change.
The new grain was grown in a lab by researchers at Seoul’s Yonsei University and is packed with beef muscle and fat cells.
The result is a pink rice that the team says could offer a cheaper and more environmentally sustainable meat alternative and leave a smaller carbon footprint.
“Imagine obtaining all the nutrients we need from cell-cultured protein rice,” said Park So-hyeon, who co-authored the study.
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“Rice already has a high nutrient level, but adding cells from livestock can further boost it,” she said in a press release on Wednesday, when the study was published in the Matter journal.
The grain was coated in fish gelatin to help beef cells latch onto the rice, and then left to culture in a Petri dish for up to 11 days.
The final product contained 8 per cent more protein and 7 per cent more fat than regular rice, the team said, and was more firm and brittle than natural grains.
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