Would You Eat The World’s First 3D-Printed, Plant-Based Steak?

Image: Redefine Meat

‘Redefine Meat’ Has Created The World’s First 3D-Printed Steak 

Redefine Meat’s products are revolutionary, to say the least! These 3D-printed, plant-based faux meat products are free from GMOs, antibiotics, cholesterol — and, you guessed it — actual animal flesh. Since forming in 2018, Redefine Meat has raised more than $135 million in funding to bring the world cuts of highly-realistic faux meat.

CEO of Redefine Meat, Eshchar Ben-Shitrit, says that their technology can produce whole-muscle cuts in a much more efficient way with a lower cost. Plus, compared to environmental degradation and greenhouse gas emissions associated with animal agriculture and factory farming, Redefine Meat’s products are much better for our environment. “This is the best way to fight climate change, deliver healthier solutions, and food to the entire population."

Image: Redefine Meat

How Are The Cuts Of ‘Meat’ Produced?

You’re probably wondering how a printer could create a highly-realistic, edible cut of plant-based meat! Well, the food engineers at Redefine Meat have taken protein from plants and programmed their 3D printers to layer these strands on top of one another. But first, they needed to outline the components of various cuts of meat to create a realistic copy. 

“We identified three main components — the muscle, the blood, and the fat,” says Alexey Tomsov, a food engineer at Redefine Meat. “These are the components that we need to mimic in order to reach the perfect, beautiful steak”. 

In this video, you can see the 3D printer recreating the shape, colour and texture of a steak using strands of edible material — which is said to contain a blend of soy, pea protein, coconut fat, chickpeas, and beetroot.

Image: Marco Pierre White / Green Queen

Marco Pierre White Says The Vegan Steaks Are “Pure Genius”

World-famous chef, Marco Pierre White, has called the plant-based steaks “pure genius”, which is why they’ve earned a spot on his menu at his Steakhouse Bar and Grill in Plymouth, UK! He says that his new range of plant-based dishes — created with Redefine Meat’s 3D-printed steaks — reflect what more and more customers now want.

Whilst faux meats have grown commercially, Marco Pierre White says that historically, “plant-based meat products have fallen way short in terms of the quality and versatility required for our menus”. Many faux meats commonly lack the taste, smell, texture and structure of common cuts of meat. But now, he says, “Redefine Meat’s New-Meat products are pure genius, giving you all the sustainability and health benefits of plant-based, without the compromise on taste."

Image: Redefine Meat / Facebook

How Can Redefine Meat Products Be Used?

Redefine Meat is on a mission to pull devoted carnivores into the plant-based world and eliminate the need for animal agriculture. So far, the Israeli company has wowed the culinary world with their plant-based hamburgers, sausages, lamb kebabs, middle eastern ‘cigars’, and ground beef products.

“We can do the entire cow, not only one part of the cow,” says Ben-Shitrit. “Steaks, roast, slow-cooking, grilling — everything that an animal can do, we want to do the same, or even better,” he says. 

For high-end restaurants, the possibilities are endless. Dutch chef and TV personality Ron Blaauw says that Redefine Meat is a gamechanger — “as we can now serve another variety of high-quality meat to our customers that just happens to be made from plant-based ingredients. 

Image: Redefine Meat

3D-Printed Steak Could Revolutionise The Alternative Meat Market

Redefine Meat’s $135 million boost in funding will enable the company to reach 5,000 new commercial locations across Europe, and allow a new factory to be built in the Netherlands. The global demand for plant-based meat could skyrocket to $74 billion in the next decade, from around $4 billion in 2020. 

Other companies are working with similar technologies to create highly-realistic plant-based products too. It's evident that the alternative meat industry is moving beyond creating standard ‘ground’ meat, which typically contains the same texture and taste throughout the entire product. 

3D printing offers a highly-realistic, versatile end product — ending the need for animal agriculture in the future — fantastic news for animal welfare and environment conservation.