Maneka Gandhi pitches for lab-grown meat

Union minister Maneka Gandhi today strongly favoured promotion of 'clean meat' (laboratory-grown meat) against animal meat which, she said, may not be healthy.

"Clean meat has been invented. The cellular multiplications of meat cells in a meat serum is already there. The point is, how do we put it into a commercial form and how do we involve industry?" she told reporters here.

She was speaking after inaugurating an event on 'The Future of Protein: A summit on the new food revolution' at the CSIR-Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) here.

The CCMB and Humane Society International (HSI) India have recently signed a memorandum of understanding to develop and promote clean meat in India.

Gandhi said government institutions like the CCMB should conduct research on the subject and make the data available to all as the technology would remain expensive (and may not replace animals) if foreign countries are allowed to develop and distribute it in the country.

The technology on 'clean meat' is at an advanced stage in the US with people having already gone into trials and it may also get Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recognition by next year, she said.

Asked if India is currently eating "dirty meat", she said animal meat may not be healthy.

"Yes. the world is eating dirty meat. Do you think that by washing, it becomes clean? No. Because, it itself there are so many diseases. Foot and mouth, tuberculosis ... leukaemia, these are only a few of the things," she said.

Consuming animal meat is a burden on the environment as well in view of the foodgrains to be fed to the animals and the amount of water they consume, she said.

Citing a study report, Gandhi said substantial percentages of consumers favoured consumption of clean meat.

"The fact that it is called clean meat, immediately has a resonance," she said.

Asked about the argument that meat is seen as a source of protein for poor people, she said it is better to eat good protein.

"I am not attempting to put you on to a plant-based diet even though I would like to. I am saying that I cannot stop you from eating meat. So, why not eat good meat?