Eventually we will be able to produce genetically engineered plants whose fruits (or tubers) are made of meat.

There should be enormous economies involved in growing meat on the vine rather than on the hoof. A one-stage food production regimen should be more energy-efficient than a two-stage scheme (grow food, feed food to secondary food). Also, orchards are much easier to keep than herds, and can generally be grown on much less land. Even picking fruit is a more pleasant activity than slaughtering cattle.

This should overcome the objections of both ethical vegetarians (who won't eat animals for sympathetic reasons) and environmental vegetarians (who, as noted above, don't like wasting natural resources to inefficiently convert one food source [corn, etc.] into another.) Of course, ascetic vegetarians (who don't eat meat for reasons of spiritual discipline) and picky vegetarians (who just think meat is yucky) will not be converted. (For them we have Vegi-cattle, GM animals that grow fruit & tubers.)
-- td, Jul 13 2001

Animal 57 http://www.kibo.com...sis/animal_57.shtml
An old Kibo in-joke: Taco Bell gets their meat from genertically-engineered blocks of pure meat growing in tanks. [baf, Jul 13 2001]

Halfbakery: Vat Grown Food http://www.halfbake.../Vat_20Grown_20Food
Probably what PeterSealy remembers. [jutta, Jul 13 2001]

Baked: This is called S.P.A.M. - Scientifically Produced Animal Matter. It's sold in cans in the supermarket.

Seriously, what you're going after is baked already. It's called TOFU and, most notably, Morningstar Farms has an entire line of non-meat meat. I've been vegetarian since 1990, and I love this stuff...
-- gb2000, Apr 26 2002


Researchers at the University of California at Davis can grow plants that produce plastic. One plant can make five gallon-sized milk jugs.
-- 1kester, Apr 26 2002


I once thought I saw a Meat Plant in the corner of a field that I was walking through. I decided to go over to it and take a closer look - the worst mistake I ever made. It turned out to be a 'Ham Bush'.

<groan>
-- stupop, Apr 26 2002



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