Astronauts grow meat in space

Astronauts have successfully grown a beef steak in space, holding out hope for longer space missions. Food company Aleph Farms announced on Monday that the experiment of growing meat in space, conducted on the Russian side of the International Space Station has been successful.

"In space, we don't have 10,000 or 15,000 liter (3962.58 gallon) of water available to produce one Kg (2.205 pound) of beef. This joint experiment marks a significant first step toward achieving our vision to ensure food security for generations to come, while preserving our natural resources. This keystone of human achievement in space follows Yuri Gagarin's success of becoming the first man to journey into outer space, and Neil Armstrong's 50th anniversary this year, celebrating the moment when the first man walked on space," Aleph Farms stated in an email statement to Slashgear.

The company also uploaded a YouTube video on the subject.

Aleph Farms specialises in lab-grown meat and was the company that supplied the bioprinter that was used to create lab-grown beef in space.

Lab-grown meat might be considered fancy on earth, however, in space, it may be a requisite if longer range and longer duration missions need to be undertaken. It may also resolve the issues with carrying large amounts of ration in space.

It is not yet commercially viable, but since the technology is in its nascent stages, that is to be expected. If feasible on a large scale, it may also have a positive impact on the environment and cattle and grazing are among the largest contributors to global warming.

Aleph Farms claims that its technology requires a fraction of space, nutrients compared to livestock. It also calls it 'cruelty-free.'

The company treats it as a proof of concept and states that this can help set up such labs, both on space as well as the earth.

How the commercial reception of lab-grown meat will be, is not yet known.