# Would vegetarians eat meat grown on a stick? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 27, 2007, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814 "2007-04-27T01:21:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/21 "2007-04-27T17:06:43Z")
[QUOTE=devilsknew] Sounds like vat meat could make an indistuingishable sausage. If the day comes with this alternative, as a Buddhist, I will become a sausagetarian and give up the suffer and the sufferage. [/QUOTE] Which all sounds fine until you die and are reborn as a vat-grown sausage. šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/22 "2007-04-27T17:14:01Z")
Why would anyone want to eat meat-on-a-stick, be they vegetarian or not? ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/23 "2007-04-27T17:14:40Z")
If you wouldnā€™t eat meat out of a vat would any of you eat meat out of a Star Trekesque replicator? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/24 "2007-04-27T17:19:49Z")
[QUOTE=Mangetout] Would non-vegetarians eat vat-grown human flesh? Seems like a somewhat analogous question. [/QUOTE] Depends on how it tastes. If it tasted good, Iā€™d have no problem chowing down on some vat-grown, ā€œlong porkā€ BBQ. At least vat grown meat would take some of the piss out of self-righteous, PETA-type vegetarians. All theyā€™d be left with is tepid (mostly exaggerated) ā€œhealthā€ objections to eating the meat and itā€™s hard to wring much moral superiority out of that. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/25 "2007-04-27T17:28:14Z")
Vat-grown meat would be great for the environment, by the way, not to mention for animals. Tree-hugging, hippie, granola crunchers should welcome this technology. Turning up the nose and saying ā€œewwā€ is immature and short-sighted and counter to their long term goals. The meat is perfectly safe. Itā€™s not gross or harmful. I donā€™t even think it has fat in it. ---
**Author:** ![tashabot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tashabot/32/6250_2.png) [@tashabot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tashabot)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/26 "2007-04-27T17:30:42Z")
Iā€™m not a vegetarian. Iā€™ve never entertained the idea of being vegetarian. I love meat, and I donā€™t care if an animal died so I could eat it. The idea of vat-grown meat just sounds gross to me, and if I _were_ a vegetarian, I wouldnā€™t eat it out of the general gross factor. **Diogenes the Cynic** - You know the PETA types will always find something to bitch about. Where did those scientists get the DNA to grow vat stuff? Thatā€™s right, they _STOLE_ it from poor, defenseless animals! Without their permission! :rolleyes: But letā€™s not get me started on a PETA rant. ~Tasha ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/27 "2007-04-27T17:34:28Z")
[QUOTE=Mangetout] Would non-vegetarians eat vat-grown human flesh? Seems like a somewhat analogous question. [/QUOTE] The other other white meat. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/28 "2007-04-27T17:48:52Z")
[QUOTE=Muffin] Why would anyone want to eat meat-on-a-stick, be they vegetarian or not? [/QUOTE] What do you have against corn dogs? ---
**Author:** ![overlyverbose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9dc877/32.png) [@overlyverbose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overlyverbose)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/29 "2007-04-27T18:27:05Z")
[QUOTE=Christopher] You are, of course, very correct here. I went semi-vegetarian for some time, and the greatest benifit is the lack of processed food. Once I get outa the no-time-to-cook trap Iā€™m in that is where Iā€™m headed. [/QUOTE] I think that many vegetarians are far healthier than their omnivorous counterparts, but vegetarian does not always equal healthy or less processed in my experience. Iā€™ve had several friends who were vegetarian and overweight because, while they didnā€™t eat meat, they ate cheese. A lot of cheese - in mac nā€™ cheese, other pasta dishes, friend mozzarella sticks, etc. And chips and ice cream and so on. There are many, many processed foods that could be considered vegetarian. And as a former vegetarian and someone who rarely eats meat to this day, Iā€™d be suspicious of meat grown on a stick. I now have these horrible images of meat seeds, meat flower buds and blossoming meat. We really need that vomiting smiley. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/30 "2007-04-27T18:28:45Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] What do you have against corn dogs? [/QUOTE] Sexual appliances should not be consumed. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/31 "2007-04-27T18:38:31Z")
[QUOTE=Muffin] Sexual appliances should not be consumed. [/QUOTE] So much for the edible panty industry. ---
**Author:** ![Slypork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc29f/32.png) [@Slypork](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slypork)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2007, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/32 "2007-04-27T19:01:56Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] Vat-grown meat would be great for the environment, by the way, not to mention for animals. Tree-hugging, hippie, granola crunchers should welcome this technology. Turning up the nose and saying ā€œewwā€ is immature and short-sighted and counter to their long term goals. The meat is perfectly safe. Itā€™s not gross or harmful. I donā€™t even think it has fat in it. [/QUOTE] Wouldnā€™t the ā€œveatā€ (vat meat) need some kind of fat in order to provide the marbling that gives steaks their distinctive flavor? Vegetable shortening doesnā€™t have the same taste or consistency as animal fat so they would need to come up with some artificial alternative. While the introduction of pseudomeat would be help the environment to some degree, its impact would be negligible for quite a while. Suppose that the entire North American cattle industry was replaced by Veat ā„¢ (that would never happen because the beef council is strong and many people would object to eating Frankensteers). That would not impact the South American cattle industry that mows down rain forests to provide grazing land. Nor would it do anything for third world countries that would not be able to afford the technology. They will continue to use whatever food sources they have, including cattle and the environment be damned. Besides, it we canā€™t get bags of grain to starving countries because of political squabbling, thievery and greed, do you really think we could get artificial meat to some place like Darfur? Anyway, I thought we already had a meat substitute. Itā€™s called a dildo. ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/33 "2007-04-28T01:26:34Z")
I would gladly eat vat grown meat. I think it would be better for the environment, better for the animals, and a step towards that utopian technociety we learned about in _The Sleeper_. (Incidently, if you travel through time, could you pick me up an orgasmotron?) ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/34 "2007-04-28T02:19:58Z")
Meat on a stick is people. Spread the word. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/35 "2007-04-28T02:31:31Z")
Iā€™ve been a proponent of vat-grown meat for a long time on the SDMB. (Look at my sig, second link, and do a search for ā€˜vat-grown meatā€™ on the SDMB.) I honestly do not really understand people who say they wouldnā€™t eat vat-grown meat. Iā€™m not being snarky or condescending or, I think, dense. Iā€™m simply confused. So, would one or more of those opposed to the idea explain their opposition in this thread, please? I would very much appreciate it. > [@erie774](#): > > Wouldnā€™t the ā€œveatā€ (vat meat) need some kind of fat in order to provide the marbling that gives steaks their distinctive flavor? Vegetable shortening doesnā€™t have the same taste or consistency as animal fat so they would need to come up with some artificial alternative. As I understand it, you can grow any kind of cells you want in a vat. Skeletal muscle or fat or cardiac muscle or smooth muscle, it doesnā€™t matter. So the people selling vat-grown meat would presumably grow fat by the same method and mix it into the finished product in the desired ratio. I donā€™t think very many companies would buy meat that had 0% fat. > [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > Depends on how it tastes. If it tasted good, Iā€™d have no problem chowing down on some vat-grown, ā€œlong porkā€ BBQ. I personally want to eat meat grown from my own cells. > [@stucco](#): > > Also, where would the energy for growing this meat come from? One of my dadā€™s favorite arguments for eating meat is that since cows can eat grass and other plant products that humans canā€™t, eating beef allows us to utilize plant energy we otherwise couldnā€™t. Would they grow the vat-meat in sugar water? Some other solution? And where would that stuff come from? Thatā€™s a very good question. Vat-grown meat factories would presumably run on the same energy sources as car factories or any other industrial concern of their size. Hopefully, by the time this is commonplace weā€™ll have moved a larger percentage of our industry to green energy sources. At the very least, vat-grown meat will reduce the amount of methane put into the air by domesticated ruminants (in addition to saving the rainforest from being turned into crappy grazing land and so on). ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/36 "2007-04-28T03:50:29Z")
[QUOTE=Christopher] Out of curiosity sake I tried those. [/quote] Sake can lead to crazy times indeed. I hadnā€™t heard of that brand before, though. > [@](#): > > Actually they are not very good. You donā€™t say! -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/37 "2007-04-28T13:08:15Z")
> [@](#): > > I honestly do not really understand people who say they wouldnā€™t eat vat-grown meat. Iā€™m not being snarky or condescending or, I think, dense. Iā€™m simply confused. So, would one or more of those opposed to the idea explain their opposition in this thread, please? Iā€™m not going to pretend my feelings about the subject are rational. Iā€™m sure vat-grown meat probably _is_ a pretty good idea from a purely logical perspective, but that doesnā€™t change the fact that my immediate, visceral reaction is ā€œYuck.ā€ I think itā€™s got something to do with the artificiality of the process, plus the fact that disembodied muscle is a little freaky, just like, say, disembodied eyeballs. (And yes, I know all meat-producing animals are disembodied by the time the butcher gets through with them, but thatā€™s just ā€¦ different, somehow.) Not a vegetarian, BTW, although I do try to eat locally-grown, not-heavily-processed food most of the time. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/38 "2007-04-28T13:51:51Z")
[QUOTE=stucco] Also, where would the energy for growing this meat come from? One of my dadā€™s favorite arguments for eating meat is that since cows can eat grass and other plant products that humans canā€™t, eating beef allows us to utilize plant energy we otherwise couldnā€™t. Would they grow the vat-meat in sugar water? Some other solution? And where would that stuff come from? [/QUOTE] I think this argument may actually work _against_ meat-eaters. Most cows arenā€™t out foraging naturally grown grass on land that couldnā€™t be used for something else. Their food is planted and harvested for them. How much acreage must be used to feed one cow? How many people are fed off of that one cow? How many people could be fed if you planted people-food instead of cow-food? Lots of energy is wasted turning cow-food into cow, so it might be more efficient to bypass the cow and just eat the plants. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/39 "2007-04-28T18:40:08Z")
[QUOTE=Muffin] Sexual appliances should not be consumed. [/QUOTE] So _thatā€™s_ wear the coating comes from! ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2007, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814/40 "2007-04-28T19:49:43Z")
I think the biggest problem with vat growm meat is going to be texture. Without the bone to provide structure, and give the muscle cells a direction to grow its just going to be randomly arranged. It will probably be very soft and fall apart easily. That is why I call it meat on a stick. By growing it on a stick, you have the potential to give structure to it. Otherwise, I think the first use for vat grown meat is going to be as a broth. I wouldnā€™t have any moral issue with eating human flesh that is grown in a vat, but I think health-wise such a thing would be very unwise. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-vegetarians-eat-meat-grown-on-a-stick/401814.md?page=3)