This is the VOA Special EnglishAGRICULTURE REPORT.
Some food stores in the United States have begun to sell aproduct called Quorn (pronounced kworn.) Quorn looks and tastes alot like meat. Yet it is made from a fungus. A fungus is an organismthat does not have roots or leaves. It lives on organic material.
In Europe, Quorn already is a popular food with people who do noteat meat. Europeans can choose from more than one-hundred differentQuorn products.
Quorn comes from an organism called Fusarium venenatum. It is amember of the Fungi family that includes mushrooms. The organism wasfirst discovered in Britain several years ago. Scientists found thefungus could be made into a product that is similar in appearance toanimal tissue.
The food product was developed by Marlow Foods, a businessoperated by the European company AstraZeneca.
Quorn is grown in large containers and then processed. Theprocess produces a kind of food called mycoprotein. The finishedproducts sold in stores are made to taste like either chicken orbeef. Quorn foods look and feel like traditional meat products.
People who have tested Quorn praise its taste. The mycoproteinused to make Quorn products have high levels of protein and fiber.Some of the products have less fat and harmful cholesterol thanchicken or other meat.
Quorn foods began arriving in American stores this year after theFood and Drug Administration completed a safety inspection.
Recently, one group urged the F-D-A to reconsider its decision.The Center for Science in the Public Interest urged the agency tostop claims being made by Marlow Foods.
The group questioned the company’s claim that Quorn comes fromthe mushroom family. It noted that mycoprotein is not a mushroom,which is a common food. The group says that Quorn is a kind offungus people do not expect in a food.
The Center for Science in the Public Interest also questioned theeffectiveness of Quorn’s testing. The group said some of theproteins in the product might cause harmful allergic reactions inpeople. It says the F-D-A should require the company to test forpossible reactions.
At the same time, the group praised the company for attempting tomake a healthy product without harming the environment.
This VOA Special English AGRICULTURE REPORT was written by GeorgeGrow.