Could we do without agriculture?

What if the next evolution was synthetic food?

Over the 300,000 years of human history, agriculture has only been present for a relatively short time. It has, however, enabled an evolution that can be seen even in our modern technologies. However, this technique has an important ecological price because the ever-growing population always needs more arable land and animals to satisfy its needs for meat, fruits and vegetables, among others. Yet, at the current rate, this is leading us straight to catastrophe as the Akkadians did, a civilization that will have disappeared after drying up too many surrounding water sources.

So what's the solution? Biotechnology researchers believe that synthetic food may well save us. Indeed, from simple stem cells, it is possible to reproduce animal flesh, be it beef or fish. For plants, it is even easier since all cells are capable of reproduction and potentially form a new leaf or fruit. Most of the experiments seem to come close to the original taste. Researchers are trying to experiment with their bioreactors so that the copy is nearly identical.

And they are almost there. However, that doesn't mean that traditional agriculture will disappear. At least, not overnight. Because meeting today's food needs would require thousands, if not millions, of reactors around the world. Nevertheless, it is possible that a transitional phase will soon begin in which, little by little, synthetic foods will enter the world's diet. A new reality that would allow the abandonment of hectares of land so that they become wild again and stop the mass extinction of species of fauna and flora.

Time: 25 minutes