by Terrence Aym

Created on: February 21, 2012   Last Updated: February 23, 2012

Someday—maybe sooner than you think—your big, juicy burger may not come from livestock, but a 3D printer. At least that's what environmental and bio-scientists see ahead in food technology.

Their vision of our future, however, is nothing new. Back in 1932 Winston Churchill wrote, "Fifty years hence, we shall escape the absurdity of growing a whole chicken in order to eat the breast or wing by growing these parts separately under a suitable medium." The production process is called "

in vitro."

Churchill was correct…and only off by about three decades.

For the most part, people who consume food nowadays have little, if any, idea of the origins of what's ending up on their plates. Most are oblivious to the ongoing revolution in food technology that began some 500 years ago.

The revolution began in the 16th Century when European monks discovered ways to create plant hybrids of peas and beans. That breakthrough led to the technology of mass hybridization and eventually genetically modified foods.

Cloning of both plant and animals arrived next. Some foods you eat are mostly cloned, like the banana.

Custom made, assembly line meat

The current calls for a "meatless society" are unrealistic. Few are willing to give up a juicy steak, barbecued spareribs or a stuffed Thanksgiving turkey.

Sure the ranks of vegetarians and vegans has increased, but the population as a whole has increased too and statistically meatless eaters' percentages are basically unchanged from a quarter-century ago.

The dietary needs of third-world countries must be considered as well. Proteins are in huge demand and the supply is limited to burgeoning populations.

“Factory” meat will use less energy, less water and less labor to produce. The meat can be custom-made to have less fat, more muscle fiber, greater nutritive value and made easier to digest.

Food scientists claim the flavor can be enhanced or modified in a thousand subtle ways. The cost will commensurately come down too as production increases.

According to The Australian, "Mark Post, professor of vascular physiology at Maastricht University in the Netherlands, where burger meat with muscle cells identical to those found in real meat is being grown, said: 'We are in the process of growing a first hamburger from bovine stem cells. We hope to have an edible, commercially viable product by the end of this year.'"

Post creates the meat with a concoction of sugars, amino acids, lipids, and other nutrients required to make edible

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