![]()
We need to talk about the future of meat
The earth’s population is predicted to reach nine billion people by 2050 – and a lot of those people will want to eat meat. It’s no secret, however, that the global meat industry is wasteful, polluting and a major source of greenhouse gases. How can we solve the world’s protein crisis? While it’s possible everyone might switch to insects or tofu, there’s a brand new player on the horizon: lab-grown meat.
You might remember in vitro meat from the world's first lab-grown hamburger that was presented in August. This technology may soon allow us to produce eco-friendly, animal-friendly meat on a commercial scale, using far fewer resources than “conventional” meat.
Despite its obvious benefits, many people are still uncomfortable with the idea of in vitro meat. Some even call it unnatural or disgusting. And rightly so. Because before we can decide if we ever want to eat lab-grown meat, we need to explore how it might change our society and everyday lives.
The future of meat, now in cookbook form!
Using the format of the cookbook as a storytelling medium, the In Vitro Meat Cookbook is a visually stunning exploration of the new “food cultures” lab-grown meat might create. This book approaches lab-grown meat not just from a design and engineering perspective, but also from a societal and ethical one. What will holiday dinners look like if in vitro meat replaces turkey? Would you eat meat grown from your own stem cells? Is lab-grown meat kosher? Or vegetarian?
This cookbook features dozens of recipes that are delicious, uncanny, funny and inspiring. Think of meat paint, revived dodo wings, meat ice cream, cannibal snacks, steaks knitted like scarves and see-through sushi grown under perfectly controlled conditions. Though you can’t cook these recipes just yet, they’ve all been developed with strict culinary rigor to have correct ingredients and cooking techniques.
The delightful and weird recipes are complimented by fascinating interviews and thought-provoking essays from scientists, activists, philosophers and chefs. Our network of experts will ensure that the cookbook is as scientifically accurate as possible, all while remaining lively and highly approachable for a general audience.
The In Vitro Meat Cookbook is just at home with your art, philosophy and science books as it is on your cookbook shelf. As the ultimate conversation starter about the future of food, it will redefine not just how you think about lab-grown meat, but how you think about the ways we produce meat right now. Rather than pushing an agenda, this book aims to inspire educated debate.
The In Vitro Meat Cookbook is divided into four chapters:
-
Feed the World discusses the ways in which lab-grown meat could address world hunger.
-
Sustainability outlines the eco-friendly credentials of in vitro meat – and the ways it might not be as sustainable as we think.
-
Stop Animal Cruelty talks about the cultural, moral and religious ramifications of a world where animals don’t need to die for meat.
-
Explore New Food Cultures presents truly wild visions of in vitro meals. It’s molecular gastronomy on meat-flavored steroids.
We're fascinated by in vitro meat...
Next Nature, the group behind the In Vitro Meat Cookbook, has been exploring in vitro meat for over two years. Many of the book’s speculative recipes come from the Next Nature Lab at Eindhoven Technical University, one of the best design schools in the Netherlands. We've also produced a dedicated in vitro meat exhibition, currently on view at the Rotterdam World Food Festival. Not content with a book, lab and exhibition, we even made a special “in vitro meat ice cream cart”, with actual, edible ice cream flavored with bacon, beef and (pretend) polar bear.
...but we're still undecided about it.
Just because we're in vitro meat experts doesn’t mean we think it’s the only (or even the best) solution to the global protein crisis. We’re not starry-eyed activists, nor are we bound to the meat industry’s agenda. Just like you, we want to make informed decisions about which meat future we actually want.
What will the cookbook look like?
The book's design refers to the old-fashioned cooking bibles your grandma might have owned, combined with contemporary typography and photography. The effect is a timeless design that fits with the speculative nature of the book. The involvement of renowned art director Hendrik-Jan Grievink will guarantee an top-notch result.
![]()
EXQUISITE DRAWINGS OF THE DISHES
Illustrator Silvia Celiberti has created unique BIC pen drawings to visualize the book's recipes and products. Besides these extraordinarily detailed drawings,
the book will also contain a full color section with lush photography and
renderings.
![]()
Example Dishes
Magic Meatballs
Magic Meatballs are designed to playfully familiarize children with lab-grown meat. Young people are more prone to overconsumption of proteins and fats, and are more sensitive to the hormones and antibiotics used in conventional meat production. Luckily, lab-grown Magic Meatballs can be tailored precisely to a child’s individual needs.
The basic meat consists solely of animal protein, and the combination of fats, omega-3s and vitamins is completely customizable. Colors and flavors can also be added to the neutral base to make the meat change color or crackle in your mouth. Magic Meatballs actively involve kids with the meat they eat, so that future generations will more readily accept protein grown in labs.![]()
Meat Power
The number one argument for eating meat: it provides nutritious proteins
that cannot be entirely supplied by vegetarian alternatives. Like it or
not, humans are omnivores. Meat is a nutritious source of proteins and
vitamins that vegetarian alternatives struggle to supply. Thanks to Meat
Powder, we can transcend our barbaric impulses and history of animal
cruelty. Meat Powder is a straightforward form of in vitro meat that
provides the proteins you need – no more, no less. Meat Powder can be
used in soups, pies and salads, but is best used in a creamy meat
fondue. Like the traditional cheese fondue, the meat fondue is a social
dish best served at special occasions. Pure, fun, and 100% victimless.
![]()
Kitchen Bioreactor
The Kitchen Meat Incubator does for home cooking what the electronic
synthesizer did for the home musician. It provides its users with a set
of pre-programmed samples that can be remixed and combined to their
liking. Besides the preparation of traditional styles like steak,
sausage or meatballs, consumers can bring their own imagination to the
meat preparation process. The handy sliders on the device control size,
shape and texture. More expensive models of the Kitchen Meat Incubator
also come with a wireless link that allows you to download meat recipes
from the internet or share them with friends.
![]()
Knitted Meat
Rather than growing whole steaks in bio-reactors, Knitted Meat assumes that it is more feasible to create thin threads of protein. Supermarkets sell balls of meat fiber seasoned with various spices and vegetable flavors. New kitchen appliances enable consumers to weave meat according to preset preferences. Texture, taste and tenderness can be controlled to create a personal, multisensory eating experience. Groups of diners can even knit their own sections of a protein scarf, enabling multiple people to share a unique moment.
![]()
Meat Flowers
While vegetarian food products typically mimic existing meat products, the meat flower reverses this principle: In vitro technology is used to grow meat in the shape of a flower. The sweet-savory flower amuse is served sushi style and consumed leaf by leaf using chopsticks. Molecular cooking goes figurative.
![]()
Meat Fruit
La Pâte Meat Fruit aims to seduce and inspire diners with an
entirely new eating experience that balances eating meat and fruit. In
vitro technology is used to grow meat structures that precisely mimic
those of various existing fruits such as berries, oranges, and mangoes.
The result is used to create La Pâte, a sweet-savory
amuse-bouche ideal for Michelin-starred restaurants. Besides the joy of
fusing fruit and meat into one exclusive hypernatural dining experience,
meat-fruit is also a celebration of our unisex culture. In contrast to
our prehistoric past where men hunted and women gathered, we now live in
a post-masculine, post-feminist society where gender doesn’t matter
like before. Meat-fruit exemplifies the perfect blend between male and
female.
![]()
Paint with Meat!
