Scientists from Japan have produced lab-grown beef that resembles the meat from Wagyu cows. 

According to an article on eurkealert.org, the team from Osaka University used two types of stem cells from the cows that would eventually be coaxed to form the different cells that are necessary to produce the meat.

By layering them in 3D, the fibres and tissues yielded from these cells were replicated to form the real-life structure of the meat.

“Using the histological structure of Wagyu beef as a blueprint, we have developed a 3D-printing method that can produce tailor-made complex structures, like muscle fibers, fat, and blood vessels,” said Dong Hee-Kang, lead author of the study.

Wagyu, which translates to ‘Japanese cow’, is renowned for its marbling feature. This is down to its high volume of intramuscular fat.

“By improving this technology, it will be possible to not only reproduce complex meat structures, such as the beautiful sashi of Wagyu beef, but to also make subtle adjustments to the fat and muscle components,” said Michiya Matsusaki, a senior author of the study.