all right, a new united nations report on climate change warns, the world has only three years to act in order to avoid an irreversible catastrophe. meanwhile, a california start-up is doing its part to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions by creating a new kind of alternative meat. cbs carter evans reports, as part of our new series, american innovation. today, we re going to be making a little air protein chicken korma. reporter: it s a classic indian dish, with a twist. it looks like regular chicken, the way it cooks. you know, it gets that little crust on the outside, there. that s the beauty of it. reporter: physicist lisa dyson is the founder and c.e.o. of air protein, and cbs news is getting an exclusive look at a product she says has the taste and texture of meat, but not come from animals. it s created using a fermentation process, similar to making yogurt, but instead of using microbes that consume milk and sugar, air protein uses microbes that eat oxygen, nitrogen
you start off with cultures. then you feed it elements of the air, and it grows and grows and grows, just like that yogurt culture. you dry that, and you get to a protein-rich flour. reporter: and that can be processed to mimic chicken, seafood, and beef. we can grow enough material to make a steak in a matter of hours. reporter: the concept for air protein came from nasa in the 60s, as a way to recycle the co2 astronauts exhale and turn it into food. dyson developed the technology ht clate change. findust today produces more than greenhouse gasses than the entire transportation sector. what s going to happen when we have ten billion people? bon appetit. really good. reporter: for now, we ll have to take dyson s word for it. she says only a small circle of people, including investors, have tried it. when are we going to get to the point where outsiders like me can try it? very soon. not yet, but very soon. reporter: so, air chicken is still in the beginning phase o