Australian startup makes a meatball from woolly mammoth

An Australian cultured meat startup has made what it describes as a mammoth meatball.

According to the company, called Vow, the purpose of the project is to draw attention to the potential of cultured meat and move people away from meat-eating in an attempt to make mealtime more environmentally friendly.

The meatball is set to go on display Tuesday at Rijksmuseum Boerhaave — a science museum in the Netherlands.

The meatballs are slightly misleading, however. For starters, the faux meat isn't designed for human consumption. In fact, the "mammoth meatballs" only really contain a very small amount of mammoth DNA. Mostly, they are lab-made. 

Because the scientists behind the faux meat didn't have access to mammoth tissue, they used a protein present in mammals called myoglobin that gives meat its texture, color and taste, identifying the DNA sequence for the mammoth version in a publicly available genome database.

The team used the DNA of an African elephant to fill gaps in the mammoth myoglobin DNA sequence. They inserted the synthesized gene into a sheep muscle cell, which was then cultured, or grown, in a lab, ultimately producing about 400 grams of mammoth meat.

What makes cultured meat better for the planet than the real thing?

Alternative meats, whether plant-based or lab-grown, are becoming more widespread as their popularity and demand grow.

The fast rise in alternative proteins and meat substitutes can be attributed to a number of factors. Concerns about the environment, health, water usage and antibiotic resistance are among them. 

Global carbon objectives have been set as a result of climate change, and considering the resources consumed by the meat sector, something needs to change. Currently, the animal agriculture industry is responsible for the clearing of forests, large amounts of water use, and around 15% of greenhouse gas emissions. 

Proponents of cultured meat (also known as cell-based meat) point to the rapid reduction in pricing compared to animal-raised meat as the clearest signal that widespread commercialization is on the horizon. The scaling up of production may help reduce the meat industry’s impact on the environment. 

Sarah Goldman contributed to this report.