It was meant in general and ironically.
However the article stated that it could be used for vegetarians who
longed for bacon and didn't want to kill an animal.  So just
spaceflights wouldn't be the only market for these grown meats.
Like quite a few things were developed for weightless situations and are
now becoming generally used.  Such as ridiculous little plastic bags
that are covered with metalfoil and contain a drinkable yoghurt.  They
are advertised here as a handy gadget for people that have no time for
breakfast and want to eat on their way to work.  It might be smarter to
avoid that kind of stress and take time for breakfast and prepare it
yourself.
Do you have them in the USA?
When in the supermarket or any other place where you can buy products,
you can see a lot of things that are MUST have instead of NEED to have.
Not developed to make our life easier but for us to consume and make a
small group of people wealthier.
For the amount of money this costs there could be a lot of research on
AIDS or cancer or whatever you may find important. I see no need for
spaceflights with people on board that may take years. Instead of
turning to space in case our planet gets even more overcrowded I think
we should try and make a better situation here on earth.
Don't forget that the race for the first man on the moon had little to
do with science but was a result of the cold war. It was a matter of
status who would get there first. And sometimes things will be done just
because they can be done. Not because they serve any real purpose.
Although I think that interstellar research could benefit us all for as
far as knowledge of how the place was even formed and such.
Funny remark coming from a diehard scififan as myself isn't it?
I'd hate to think we would become so overpopulated that we have an
urgent need for looking into spaceflights.
Or have so little land left for animals to graze on that we would need
this enginered meats. Here in Holland there is talk now about (again)
rearranging the meatfarms.   Ideally!! there would be farms with huge
hangar-like sheds where cows stay indoors all year round. It would cost
less then having them in the fields.
So the scenery of the black and white cows in the meadows may be a thing
of the past. You tell me where the link between nature and what ends up
on your plate is then.  Kids seem to think carrots grow in tins in the
factory anyway and are completely out of sync with nature. With food
flown in from all corners of the world they have no clue as to what
grows in which season. Not to mention the stress on the environment with
all that transport.
So this article on space food improvements is something that scares me
and I can see the future where it would be acceptable to the public.
Paranoid? Nah, realistic.

Christy

>
>They are working on this for years-long space voyages...not for any "us" and
>the costs of development are not really the point here...
>