Would you eat a ‘poop’ burger?

Hey, great of you to click on by. Better fill that mug and snag a treat …maybe not a chocolate one today though. Thanks to Paul in Tokyo for passing along this important discovery (from the people who eat raw fish, seaweed, poisonous fish…). Now you know I’m all for ways to improve the environment, feed the poor, etc., but this latest achievement is a bit on the ‘do we really need it’ side of innovation, and I hate to use the expression, good taste. I’d need lots of fiery hot sauce, let me tell you. So here’s what’s actually happening in Japan and, assuming you can see the picture, you can tell by the size of the machine that they’re serious. Why that’s got to hold tons of…oh, never mind… (If you can’t see the picture, go to http://coffeewithbob.blogspot.com

 

It's being called the "poop burger".  (Oh here he goes again. Bob’s back on the poop trail!) Japanese scientists have found a way to create artificial meat from sewage containing human feces. Absurd yes, but Japanese scientists have actually discovered a way to create edible steaks from human feces.

Mitsuyuki Ikeda, a researcher from the Okayama Laboratory, has developed steaks based on proteins from human excrement. Tokyo Sewage approached the scientist because of an overabundance of sewage mud. They asked him to explore the possible uses of the sewage and Ikeda found that the mud contained a great deal of protein because of all the bacteria.

The researchers then extracted those proteins, combined them with a reaction enhancer and put it in an exploder which created the artificial steak. The “meat” is 63% proteins, 25% carbohydrates, 3% lipids and 9% minerals. The researchers color the poop meat red with food coloring and enhance the flavor with soy protein. Initial tests have people saying it even tastes like beef.

Reports say that the meatpacking industry causes 18 percent of our greenhouse gas emissions, mostly due to the release of methane from animals.” Livestock also consume huge amounts of resources and space in efforts to feed ourselves as well as the controversy over cruelty to animals. Ikeda’s recycled poop burger would reduce waste and emissions.

The scientists hope to price it the same as actual meat, but at the moment the excrement steaks are ten to twenty times the price they should be due to the cost of research. Professor Ikeda understands the psychological barriers that need to be surmounted knowing that your food is made from human feces. They hope that once the research is complete, people will be able to overlook that ugly detail in favour of perks like environmental responsibility, cost and the fact that the meat will have fewer calories. Good luck selling that one, I’d say!

Now while you may not want to rush out to your supermarket in search of poop steak, then fire up the barbie. But wait a minute… if you think about it, why not ship a load (excuse the expression) of it to Africa. With 63% protein, that’d have the whole continent in fine shape by year end, wouldn’t you think? 

So where do we go from here… will vegetarians soon be clamoring for vegetarian poop burgers? Why the heck not, eh?

See ya.

Bob

Comment from Robin in Farnborough, England:

Bob, by your calculations a blond needs only seconds sleep in a day.

Bob’s reply

Having grown up with three blonde sisters, I choose not to comment on this comment…