Synthomeat
Meat grown in huge vats could be a possibility. But really, do we want to have a synthosteak? And what are the energy benefits of such a thing, ie, how much energy goes into it and what goes out of it? And with the recent scandals, how much of chemicals do we really want in our body?
I can think of a thousand more efficient ways of producing high quality protein (OK, only two or three) to feed a huge population, but instead of relying on a centralized distributor of an artificial paste I would focus on the available products from local farms.
I have two questions regarding this homogenized synthomeat: What are going to be the filters that prevent accumulation of toxins in that meat? How are the technicians and corporation using this going to ensure the proper quality of this meat, when they all will be working for a minimum investment and a maximized profit?
God, I am sounding like a Luddite, but the points are relevant. Nowadays we spend incredible amounts of energy raising cattle, in the most inhumane and anti-hygienic conditions possible, only to throw a high percentage of that meat as leftovers and spoiled goods. We are all paying for the externalities of such a gigantic and skewed industry: health problems and environmental pollution, bringing you such beauties as high cholesterol, air pollution, endocrine disruption and antibiotic resistance. Now think that again, but complicated by the fact that the meat doesn't exist anymore within a survival system, ie the cow, but in a tank where all kinds of cheap untested chemicals are going to go, all in the interest of maximizing shareholder value.
Bad idea.