Episode 399: Can You Patent a Steak?

toggle caption Joshua Marston

Note: This episode originally ran in 2012.

Tony Mata is a meat inventor; his job is figuring out new things to do with meat. We first talked to Mata when he had discovered a new steak — a novel way to cut up a chunk of beef that otherwise wasn't worth much. Mata was so excited about his discovery that he wanted to patent it.

This raises a basic question: Can you patent a steak?

On today's show, we talk to Mata. We visit the workshop of Gene Gagliardi, the inventor of Steak-Umm and KFC's popcorn chicken. And we try to figure out what meat inventors tell us about patents and innovation.

Also: Here's a video of Gene Gagliardi cutting chicken:

By Joshua Marston YouTube

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