The Shojinmeat Project is a
citizen science
The term citizen science (synonymous to terms like community science, crowd science, crowd-sourced science, civic science, participatory monitoring, or volunteer monitoring) is research conducted with participation from the general public, or am ...
movement,
loosely-structured
non-profit organization,
and art project about
cell-cultured meat. Their approach to developing and popularizing cultured meat has been noted as unique from efforts in the field before it, in that it envisions cultured meat as something that can be made at home with a process understood by its consumer,
analogous to
home brewing.
The Shojinmeat Project was created in Japan by Yuki Hanyu (),
but has become an internationally collaborative effort welcoming a variety of talent.
The ''shōjin'' of Shojinmeat's name ()
is a Japanese Buddhist term, meaning "devotion" to the path to
Nirvana
Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...
. Hanyu is not a Buddhist, but views the resource-intensive methods required for livestock meat such as deforestation as contrary to this path to Nirvana,
and named Shojinmeat in tribute to the devotion required to follow that path successfully.
The term is also part of ''
shōjin ryōri'', meaning "devotion cooking", the diet eaten by monks under the precept of not eating anything able to "run away when chased"; which has excluded nearly all kinds of animal-based meat until, arguably, the invention of cultured meat.
History
In February 2014, Yuki Hanyu had held a PhD. in Chemistry
and worked as a system engineer for Toshiba when he decided to apply his knowledge to some form of futuristic technology, having been interested in science fiction since childhood. Among other choices like space travel and energy, he chose cultured meat because of what he saw as a current global need,
and determined a "
do-it-yourself
"Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and semi- ...
" community to be convenient in the effort to bring this newly emergent technology's cost down to a popularly accessible level.
His first partners in this project were obtained at an "informal coworking space in Tokyo" called Lab Café
after he had asked for those skilled in
cell culture
Cell culture or tissue culture is the process by which cell (biology), cells are grown under controlled conditions, generally outside of their natural environment. After cells of interest have been Cell isolation, isolated from living tissue, ...
to help him theorize how meat could be grown on Mars.
It was here that Ikko Kawashima, future co-founder of
IntegriCulture, joined the team.
The Shojinmeat Project has no formal definition of membership, though in 2020, Hanyu reckoned it to have between 20 and 30 active members. Official
Slack channels, at one point, existed in Japanese and English for online collaboration.
Content
Education
The Shojinmeat Project is involved in educating the general public about cultured meat,
that is adults as well as children.
They have written manuals about the science behind cultured meat
as well as how it can be produced by individuals outside the setting of a business or laboratory.
They have conveyed such information, also, through public presentations at schools
and academic conferences.
Hanyu believes education and DIY is necessary to avoid cellular agriculture falling into corporate monopoly and, by extension, a further point of public controversy. He views the history of
genetically modified organisms
A genetically modified organism (GMO) is any organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques. The exact definition of a genetically modified organism and what constitutes genetic engineering varies, with ...
as a cautionary tale,
and in an interview with ''Hive Life'', stated that:
Fine Art
Hanyu's love of science fiction media that's served as an impetus
and inspiration in this venture
is something he believes can also work to the benefit of developing personal interest in others for what Shojinmeat teaches.
Thus, the Shojinmeat Project has spawned a sporadic gallery of artwork conveying visions of a future with cultured meat. The original characters Miyo and Aco feature in these works,
showcasing futuristic cultured meat technologies in places such as on Mars
and underwater. A
VRChat
''VRChat'' is an online virtual world platform created by Graham Gaylor and Jesse Joudrey and operated by VRChat, Inc. The platform allows users to interact with others with User-generated content, user-created 3D computer graphics, 3D Avatar (co ...
environment of a cultured meat facility on Mars was created for Shojinmeat,
and at least one
fanzine
A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) for the pleas ...
associated with Shojinmeat has been sold at
Comiket
, more commonly known as or , is a semiannual Doujinshi convention, ''doujinshi'' convention in Tokyo, Japan. A grassroots market focused on the sale of ''doujin'' (self-published) works, Comiket is a not-for-profit fan convention administered ...
.
Collaboration
IntegriCulture, Inc., a for-profit entity also founded by Yuki Hanyu, was registered in 2015 initially "as a vehicle to gain access to lab equipment" for Shojinmeat,
and its operations continued to overlap with Shojinmeat's past the 2010s.
Shojinmeat's Keita Fukumoto has discussed cultured meat in part of a 20-minute spot on
NHK
, also known by its Romanization of Japanese, romanized initialism NHK, is a Japanese public broadcasting, public broadcaster. It is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television licence, television license fee.
NHK ope ...
's ',
and Hanyu has given several interviews about the project to outlets covering food, business, and innovation in science. This includes one to
New Harvest
New Harvest is a donor-funded research institute dedicated to the field of cellular agriculture, focusing on advances in scientific research efforts surrounding cultured animal products. Its research aims to resolve growing environmental and et ...
,
with whom Shojinmeat has been featured in events and work,
stemming from them, as well as the
Good Food Institute, being in contact and collaboration since 2015.
Notes
References
{{Cultured meat startups
Non-profit organizations based in Japan
Cellular agriculture organizations
Virtual communities
Food and nutrition charities