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00:00You can't beat British grub.
00:04But these days you've got to spend a packet to bring home the bacon,
00:08and don't even get me started on the eggs.
00:11The cost of living crisis is hitting Britain hard,
00:14with food prices rising at the fastest rate in 40 years.
00:18But now a new line of affordable protein is hitting our shelves.
00:23This is engineered human meat.
00:26That's right, a protein made from human cells,
00:30that promises to be cheaper and tastier than any of its competitors.
00:35I'm Greg Wallace, and I'm off to visit Good Harvest,
00:38where a whopping six tonnes of human meat is engineered every day.
00:43That is stunning.
00:44With the promise of cheap meat for all,
00:46it may well be the meaty miracle we need to ease the squeeze of the cost of living.
00:51Anyone for human meat?
00:52I'm Michelle Ackerley, and while Greg comes face-to-face
00:56with the production line, I'll be conducting a taste test with some very picky palates.
01:01It's really, um, tender.
01:03For the first time, we're going to find out where it comes from,
01:06how it's made...
01:08Whoa!
01:09..and what it tastes like.
01:21I'm up bright and early to check out the Good Harvest processing plant in Boston,
01:26in Lincolnshire, but it wasn't the most scenic of drives.
01:29Here in my car, I have no safest of all...
01:32Hi-fixes, barbed wire, security lights, looks a bit like a prison.
01:39What next? Machine gun tower?
01:41Here in my car, I can only receive, I can listen to you.
01:46It's just made for more dice and cars...
01:52Hello?
01:54Hello?
01:54Yeah?
01:54It's Greg Wallace.
01:55I've got an appointment.
01:57I'm the bald bloke off the telly, with a glass...
02:03I couldn't wait to see the mysteries that lay inside.
02:06How do you solve the cost of living crisis with engineered human meats?
02:11It sounds like magic.
02:13And this is where the magic happens.
02:18The Good Harvest processing plant has been up and running for over eight months.
02:22It contains both industrial and clinical operations
02:25on a site the size of four football pitches.
02:31Hey! Are you Mick?
02:32I certainly am pleased to meet you. Greg?
02:34Very good to meet you. I'm here to learn.
02:35Right. Come this way and I'll show you how it all works.
02:38I want to see everything.
02:38Oh, you will.
02:40Mick Ross oversees the production line
02:42and is in charge of over 60 full-time staff
02:44who engineer roughly 50,000 steaks every day.
02:52So, come on then, Mick. How on earth do you grow human meat?
02:56I want to introduce you to our nutrient vat.
02:58Hello. Nutrient vat. Greg Wallace, telly presenter. And your job is?
03:02Well, what its job is, it processes thin slices of tissue in a nutrient-rich mix,
03:08which you see here, and then cells start to grow. So, over a 24-hour period,
03:12these will slowly fuse together into one great big, what we call a cake.
03:16So, you're telling me that that is human flesh?
03:20Exactly. But why human meat? Why not animal meat?
03:23That's a very good question. We've got centuries of knowledge of human medicine at our side.
03:27We know more about humans than we do about animals. So, we've mastered engineering human
03:32cells to make these structured flavours and sinews that we expect from the flavours of steaks we eat.
03:37Good Harvest encourages people who need the income to sign up, select their own extraction site,
03:43and get paid within the week. You expect to be feeding the nation with this. You are going to need
03:47a lot of donors. Well, it's well in demand, and we've got a lot of people coming forwards,
03:52because the other great thing about it, it's an opportunity to be paid. Would you ever consider
03:57donating yourself? Yeah, maybe I would. I mean, I may have to. My bills are as high as anybody else's.
04:01You know, I've got a young family, I've got a daughter to feed, so... And would you feed your
04:05family human steaks? Oh, yes, most definitely. Already have. After the donor's tissue samples are
04:12placed in the nutrient fat, they're stimulated with electrodes and left to grow at 40 degrees
04:17centigrade at the Proving Bay. So, Greg, after a few hours, this is what we're left with. Whoa! No way!
04:28Mate, that's the biggest chunk of meat I've ever seen. But scientifically, that's amazing,
04:33but in terms of food, that is stunning. This is incredible, isn't it? That is stunning! Look at it!
04:37This 30-kilogram protein cake will be cut into nearly 100 steaks, and it's all been grown from the
04:45cells of just one person. Maybe you'll give me a hand to lift it out. There we go. One, two,
04:51three, that's it. Whoa! Whoa! Crying out loud. We're gonna take it over onto the... Oh! Rusting board.
04:58There we go. Wow. This must be a relatively new process. Which is, I mean, under EU law,
05:04we couldn't possibly operate machines like this due to legislation, but thankfully now we're out,
05:08we can harvest people, and we can pay them for their flesh. So, what happens to this, Neil? Right,
05:12well, this will either be cut into steaks, or it'll go off and be processed for sausages, burgers,
05:16you name it. You can do anything with it. Proper space age, isn't it? It is. Meet me up Scotty.
05:23I'd got to grips with the guts of human meat production, but I wanted to know, how does this
05:29new protein compare to a real steak? It was time for that all-important taste test.
05:35I knew just the chef for the job.
05:39I'm off to Le Gavroche, a two Michelin-star restaurant in the exclusive London Borough of
05:44Mayfair, to see top chef, Michelle Rue, Jr.
05:53Chef, look at this. Look, I am seriously intrigued. This is a meat I've never seen before. I want to
05:58see
05:58what the fat content's like. I want to see what the flavour's like. I want you to cook it,
06:02because I don't know anybody better. Hang on a minute. Good harvest. Made by humans from humans?
06:07Yeah. These come from three donors in the northeast of England. Wow. I wonder if that affects the flavour.
06:13You're right. Do donors from the northeast of England have a different flavour and texture to
06:18ones from the southeast? I would have thought so, because it's what we call in French terroir.
06:22It's where you were brought up, you are what you eat at the end of the day. And we're going
06:26to find out.
06:27For my blind taste test, Michelle would cook up three different steaks, and we'd work out what
06:33sort of person they were grown from. Ideally, I want it reared outside. I want it looked after,
06:39not stressed. These donors were from the northeast, so what about a beer-fed Geordie?
06:45I don't know. It's very, very difficult to get my head around. This looks quality. So we're just going to...
06:53Mmm. Ooh. Mmm. Mmm. Are you all right? Mmm. Okay. Mmm. I'm going to put it on the plate.
06:59So we just need to let it rest for five minutes, and then you can taste it. Michelle had cooked
07:05up a
07:05human meat feast of three succulent steaks. Now the taste test could begin. Wow. Beautifully cooked,
07:12of course. Nicely presented. Should we both try this one first? Mmm. Okay. Right. Let's go.
07:20These engineered steaks are grown from the cells of human donors who are paid for their flesh,
07:25but can we guess which sort of person each steak has been grown from?
07:30Mmm. Yeah, you've got to chew this one. This... This is really...
07:39Mmm. This steak is actually one of the cheaper ones in the range. If it was 100% pure beef,
07:44I'd say that this was an animal that's got a certain age, um, and maybe, maybe a little bit
07:51stressed as well. It's quite strong flavour. Well, I've actually got some tasting notes here. So look,
07:56these good harvest steaks have been cultivated from Alison, 45 years old, NHS nurse and part-time
08:04delivery driver. So very active. Two jobs, which probably explains why the meats are a little stringy.
08:1045 is not old, but it's not veal or a young cow, as it were. Master taster Michelle hadn't quite
08:18nailed
08:18the provenance, but what about steak B? That looks nice. Mmm. Mmm. Oh, there's almost a sweetness to this.
08:29It's tender, fattier, really tender. Mmm. I've got the tasting notes on this one as well.
08:36These good harvest steaks have been cultivated from Guy, 39 years old, was working in social services,
08:43now redundant. And I think this means that he's not moving around, is he? He's doing a lot of sofa
08:49sitting and telly watching, which has made him more relaxed, plumper. It's not good for Guy, I suppose,
08:55to be redundant like that, but it's great for us. It's good eating. I don't think this is about where
09:00in the country they come from. I think it's about the lifestyle. There was one final steak to try.
09:07It's part of a new range from Good Harvest that's being kept secret until its launch.
09:11We've been given a sneak peek to try and guess the donor. It's still going through FSA trials,
09:17so they can't tell us exactly what it is, but I really want to give it a go if you
09:21are up for it.
09:21Yeah, yeah, I'm up for it. It looks great. Come on. Mmm. Right. Like a knife through butter, that is.
09:34Oh, wow. Mmm. Mmm. That hardly needs chewing. That is unreal. It is proper melt-in-the-mouth quality.
09:44Mmm. I'm quite amazed by that. And that is a third of the price of an average ribeye.
09:49Wow. The donor must be someone pretty special, I think. That is the kind of meat that I would serve
09:56here.
09:57But who is the average human donor? And why do they sign up in the first place?
10:02At the Good Harvest Clinical Wing, donors of all shapes and sizes get expert medical advice
10:08on which parts of their body are most suitable for extraction. I'd arrange to speak to one of them.
10:13Hello. Gillian. You all right, kid? Oh, yeah. Nice to meet you.
10:18I'm going to be sticking my snout in your marrow from donor to donor kebab. Go for it.
10:25Our cameras visited Gillian's home near Lincoln. Gillian is a 67-year-old retired receptionist,
10:33originally from Hornchurch. She lives with her grandson, Jimmy, and her housebound husband, David.
10:38Oh, my husband was a plasterer. But then after his back went, well,
10:43I ended up doing a lot for him. When the prices shut up, well, it buried us. It really has.
10:51Am I excited about donating? No. You know there's something wrong when you've got to jump on a bus
10:58and go and have some flesh scooped out of your arm for money.
11:04Oh, ho, ho. Oh, my silly sausage, aren't you?
11:09Are you nervous, Gillian?
11:12Yeah. It won't hurt, though, will it? I mean...
11:14Well, so we're told. I hope not.
11:16Well, it can't do, can it? Because otherwise it wouldn't be allowed.
11:20With the money from her donation, Gillian will be able to pay for nearly two weeks of energy bills.
11:25And as she processed the news, other donors were finding out what their bodies could earn.
11:37But I wanted to know, what one single thing would they use their hard-earned dosh to fix?
11:42Black mould in every room of the house. I'm going out to earn money so I can repair it.
11:49And there's no other option but to... To do it.
11:52Yeah, but good on you. No one wants mould in the house.
11:56That's correct.
11:57Attention. Numbers 12 to 24. Please make your way to the changing room to get ready for harvest.
12:03Good luck.
12:04As our gang head off to get scrubbed and cleaned for harvest, I wanted to know what was in store
12:09for them.
12:09And who better to explain than the CEO of Good Harvest and private healthcare entrepreneur Tamara Ennett.
12:16Hello, Greg. You must be Tamara. I am. Welcome to our donor site.
12:21Thank you. Thank you for your time. Of course. Would you like a talk?
12:24Would I? Does a dog woof? Come on.
12:27Tamara's company seeks to offer a helping hand to the economically deprived.
12:31It's nice. They want to disrupt the cost of living crisis by paying low-income individuals
12:36to have some of their flesh extracted. That's right. Of course.
12:39Whoa. Well, that's as cosy as my bed at home. I suppose if you're going to have a bit of
12:43cut off,
12:44you might as well be comfortable, right? And you can actually go to bed, too.
12:47How did you get into this? I mean, it's not something that is natural career move, is it?
12:51So my background is in elite healthcare, specialising in human cellular science.
12:56That combined with the cost of living crisis, the demand for cheaper meat, and voila,
13:02Good Harvest was born. It was amazing to be able to do something that would give back
13:05and help so many people that can't help themselves right now. Serious question, boss. Does it hurt?
13:11It is pain subjective. So, it hurts? It's just pain subjective. It's subjective.
13:17We just need the right people to step forward and grab this amazing opportunity to pull themselves
13:21out of the crisis. Should we get them in? Let's do it.
13:27Well, they scrub up quite well. Before harvesting begins, the donors are weighed and measured so the
13:33right amount of flesh can be extracted. How much flesh are you taking from them, Tamara?
13:39Well, it's a deliberately variable measurement. So, with Gillian, for example,
13:43we have seen that she has an excellent fat to muscle ratio, so we should be able to extract
13:47a snookable or possibly even up to an orange. Chocolate or normal?
13:53I've been invited to one of Good Harvest's operating theatres to see Gillian undergo her extraction.
14:03Oh, wow. I've never been anywhere like this. I'm going to learn a lot.
14:09Hi, Gillian. How are you doing?
14:12OK. You're looking good, Gillian?
14:14Hmm. Because of inflation, today's extraction will pay for two weeks' worth of energy bills,
14:19but not baseline care for her husband. Luckily, Tamara thought she could help.
14:24Now, Gillian, I've just been told by our team that we actually have space in our operating schedule
14:29for two incisions. So, one from the buttock and one from the upper thigh. Of course,
14:34that would result in a 50% uplifting fee. So, how does that sound?
14:38Um... Two extractions, but it's the same recovery.
14:47Yeah. If I were in your position, I would do the same.
14:51Is it not going to hurt more? It is pain subjective.
14:55Gillian, you'll soon be asleep, OK?
15:06Gillian, you'll soon be asleep.
15:06Coming up... Oh, hello.
15:08..I get an exclusive look into the surprising origins of the new Good Harvest Premium range.
15:14Wow. Yeah.
15:16Wow. Yeah.
15:24I'm in a human meat plant in Lincolnshire to explore a novel solution to the cost of living crisis.
15:30You're telling me that that is human flesh?
15:34Exactly.
15:3545 minutes ago, a 67-year-old retiree had her flesh harvested for cash to help her live within her
15:41means.
15:45But now I wanted to find out how this meaty miracle could help the public.
15:50Michelle Ackley took to the streets of London to find out.
15:53We're asking people how they're feeling, really, what the past few years have been like,
15:57how they manage their bills.
15:59The pay doesn't go up, nothing. It's just everything else that goes up.
16:03Oh, like, over the winter, instead of putting the heat on,
16:07I've been sleeping with two duvets on the city to stop the energy build,
16:12because mine's, my sobriety has gone sky high.
16:17As the lunchtime rush began, it was time for Michelle to get the samples out.
16:22Hi there. Would you like to try some human meat?
16:24From human cells.
16:26OK.
16:27Have a taste. It's from human cells.
16:31Interested in trying it?
16:31I mean, yeah, why not?
16:33Let me know what you think.
16:34Yeah.
16:37It's nice.
16:37It's really, um, tender.
16:39As a student, for 99p, I would have had himself by that.
16:43Flavour-wise, I mean, I would make a really good burger.
16:45In this rural operating theatre, the Good Harvest medical team are overseeing Gillian's recovery.
16:51Gillian, this is fluid dug from your spine, so we can check for bacterias.
16:55Oh!
16:56Gillian is that bit older, so her pain subjective reaction is at the upper end of moderate.
17:00Still within the normal range.
17:02Gillian, you look a million dollars.
17:04Aww.
17:05I was reassured that Gillian's reaction was perfectly normal, and she'd soon be heading
17:10home with a smile on her face, pleased that her double extraction would help support her family.
17:17So Tamara took me to the Good Harvest boardroom to learn more about her company's plans for the future.
17:23We're actually researching human leather.
17:26We think that it could be a low-cost game changer for the fast fashion industry.
17:29But right now, we are focused on the launch of our brand new food range, which you actually had a
17:35taster of.
17:35The mystery meat?
17:36Mm-hmm.
17:36Yeah, I don't mind telling you that was fantastic.
17:39I'd been lucky enough to taste Good Harvest's latest meat earlier.
17:42Oh, there we are. Like a knife through butter, that is.
17:46But I didn't yet know whose cells it had come from.
17:49The donor must be someone pretty special, I think.
17:51So I'd snagged a spot at a special screening of the promotional video with the board of directors to find
17:57out.
17:57Oh, hello. What an honor. Nerve sensor, right? The belly of the beast. Come on.
18:03Let's hit play.
18:08Three months ago, Good Harvest revolutionized the food industry.
18:13Now, our new product is about to disrupt it again.
18:18We're keeping our prices low while making our steaks even more succulent.
18:23What's our secret?
18:24It's well-fed children under the age of six.
18:28See, here at Good Harvest, we consider the womb nature's oven, preheating a delicious, juicy donor
18:35until their flesh is ready to eat meat.
18:39Milk-reared and well-rested, these children donate the best meat money can buy.
18:45It's all gravy, baby, because our babies taste great with gravy.
18:51The Good Harvest premium range from junior donors.
18:55D and A, chef.
19:01Any questions?
19:06How old are the children, please?
19:09Under sevens.
19:13I have to ask this. Are you expecting any moral objection?
19:18It's tested really, really well with our focus groups. It's so creamy. It just tastes better.
19:23You tasted some earlier.
19:25Yes. Yeah, a beautiful meat, but I didn't know what I was eating.
19:29Mm.
19:29Do we know how the children are now?
19:31They actually recover quicker than adults.
19:34And you're going to launch it imminently?
19:36We actually have children on site, right here, right now.
19:40Do you want to visit our junior donor department?
19:43Actually, yes, I would. Yes, I think I would.
19:46Would you like some chocolate tartare?
19:47Uh, no, I'll pass if that's okay. Thank you.
19:50Okay.
19:51I had a sandwich from the one of us.
19:53There's no doubt Good Harvest new product line is a lot to chew on.
19:57So creamy.
19:58And as I made my way to their children's medical complex, I wasn't sure what I was in for.
20:04Aww.
20:07Thankfully in the flesh, it's a reassuring sight.
20:10The idea is to create the most fun, relaxing environment possible for the kids before they
20:14go to harvest.
20:15Well, they do look happy and chilled.
20:17The children's center is impressive.
20:19And Tamara explained it was designed to allow the children to relax, because like livestock
20:24on the way to an abattoir, any stress in transit could impact the quality of their meat.
20:30Will you play with me?
20:32Yes, yes, of course I will.
20:33What is it that you would like to play?
20:36Fire, my team.
20:37That's a good game.
20:38That's a good game.
20:38Do we need to set something on fire first?
20:41No.
20:41Okay.
20:42Yeah!
20:43As well as a double extraction for Gillian, Good Harvest have managed to get Gillian's
20:47grandson Jimmy a place as a junior donor.
20:51To give a new generation a chance to pull themselves out of this crisis.
20:56This little piggy had roast beef.
20:59This little piggy had none.
21:01And this little piggy went wee wee wee all the way home.
21:08The siren marks the end of playtime.
21:11Now it's time for these children's extractions to begin.
21:14Now, do they always go in there that quickly?
21:16It depends if it's their first time donating.
21:21Are you a little bit scared about it all?
21:26Of course you are.
21:28But you know what's really, really scary to me?
21:31Have you heard of inflation?
21:34Price hikes?
21:35These things all mean that ordinary, decent people like you, you don't have many options.
21:43This, this is an amazing opportunity for you to do your bit, Jimmy.
21:47And to make your Nana proud.
21:52Do you want to be a hero?
21:58Shall we?
22:10These children donors of Good Harvest are an example to the rest of us.
22:14And it's no wonder the states are 100% behind their sacrifice.
22:20The Trussell Trust say a future without food banks requires a benefit system that works for all
22:25and secure incomes so people can afford essentials.
22:29So it's no surprise eating children seems a more likely path for our country.
22:34It's a modest proposal, but it might be the only attempt we've seen
22:39to take the Great British cost-of-living crisis seriously.
22:46I'm Greg Wallace.
22:48Bon Appetit.
22:50We'll see you next time.
22:51Food, glorious food, we're anxious to try it.
22:57Free breakfast a day, our favourite diet.
23:03Just picture a great big steak, fried protein or stewed.
23:08Oh, food, wonderful food, marvellous food.
23:14Glorious food.
23:17I'm Greg Wallace.
23:19Just the haunting of the Mädels
23:19Look for food to do
23:20Golden Teag CS
23:20I don't expect you should have a vra hugely
23:20pickets
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