Grow Your Own Meat and Fish in a Cocoon

If you had the ability to grow your own meat and fish in a device that looks like something you’d buy off of a George Foreman infomercial, would you? The Cocoon is a concept cooker that grows meat and fish from heated animal cells. Weird.

This mini-grill-looking contraption was designed by Richard Hederstierna of the Lund Institute of Technology (Sweden). His invention called the Cocoon snagged first place in the Electrolux Design Lab Competition. The Cocoon uses RFID signals to discern the type of fish or meat being prepared in the cooker. The meat’s muscle cells, nutrients, and oxygen are heated to bring your meat to life – or at least the animals post-life stage. So its cooking meat without the hassle of having to feed, nurture, and eventually slaughter it. That’s convenient.

The cooker was designed to fight the food shortages seen around the world.  Even thought Richard won the design competition, Electrolux hasn’t committed to adding the product to it’s lineup. I have to say the “design” is a winner. The Cocoon is a killer project that seems to meet a strong need. However, the Cocoon is sure to spark a controversial debate. It may be a solution to get nutrients from meat products to those areas of the world that lack healthy diets. But, would you eat meat born in a small kitchen appliance?