'Meaty rice?' Don aims to change global protein

This picture taken on May 21, 2024 shows professor Hong Jin-kee posing with a bowl containing pink "meaty rice" at the Yonsei University in Seoul. In a small laboratory in Seoul, a team of South Korean scientists are injecting cultured beef cells into individual grains of rice, in a process they hope could revolutionise how the world eats. [AFP]

In a small laboratory in Seoul, a team of South Korean scientists are injecting cultured beef cells into individual grains of rice, in a process they hope could revolutionise how the world eats.

From helping prevent famines to feeding astronauts in space, team leader and professor Hong Jin-kee believes his new so-called "meaty rice" could become an eco-friendly, ethical way for people to get their protein.