How close are we to a hamburger grown in a lab?

By Charlotte Hawks, CNN

Updated 1923 GMT (0323 HKT) March 8, 2018

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Americans are wary of many sci-fi developments in science and technology, according to a<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/17/tech/innovation/future-technology-pew/index.html" target="_blank"> recent Pew survey</a>. Read on to see U.S. adults' opinions about drones, robot nurses, lab-engineered meat and other futuristic advancements.

Photos: Fearing the future?

Fearing the future? – Americans are wary of many sci-fi developments in science and technology, according to a recent Pew survey. Read on to see U.S. adults' opinions about drones, robot nurses, lab-engineered meat and other futuristic advancements.

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Photos: Fearing the future?

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Story highlights

The creation of in vitro, or "clean," meat involves extracting stem cells from animals
The extracted cells are grown and multiplied in a lab to create meat
Experts' conservative estimates say clean meat will on store shelves by 2021

(CNN)The latest craze in the food industry, in vitro or "clean" meat, is produced by extracting stem cells from animals and then growing and multiplying those cells in a lab to create a piece of meat.

The cells "start to divide and start to form new muscle tissues. ... (We) let them proliferate until we have trillions of cells," explained Dr. Mark Post, CEO of Mosa Meats, one of the earliest creators of clean meat. The process of making a hamburger patty takes about nine weeks.