The Month In Cultivated Meat—August
Welcome to Cultivated Bites, my monthly newsletter and blog, delving into the dynamic world of cultivated meat. The future is harm-free meat, join me on this journey!
About Me?
My name is Nick and I am not a vegan, nor am I even a vegetarian.
I love to cook, especially meat. But I would switch to an alternative if it ensured the same taste. I have tried so many plant-based meat alternatives, but as a foodie, I know they just aren’t the same.
Plant-based alternatives are truly amazing, vegetarians in the 80s would fall off their chairs at all the options available today. But there’s one problem, it just isn’t meat.
Veganism and vegetarianism remain far from globally adopted. I believe that we can have our cake (or shall I say meat) and eat it too—for >50% of the world to become vegan, cultivated meat is a must.
That’s why I am creating this newsletter, to raise awareness, change opinions, bust myths, and work toward a future where we no longer have to harm animals to enjoy them.
Bans, New Products & A Reality Check
It was a perfect month to launch this blog, as the cultivated meat sector experienced a surge in news and developments.
Breakthrough approvals in the EU
Hostile bans continue in the US
An Aussie start-up challenges the world
Consumers are becoming more open to cultivated meat, but there’s more work to go.
🍽️Small Bites
Mission Barns unveiled a new bioreactor for producing cultivated meat and fat.
Aussie start-up Magic Valley made it to the top 250 competing in the 2024 Entrepreneurship World Cup.
Singapore continues to lead the world in cultivated meat, with local startup Ants Innovate holding a tasting for its ‘Cell Essence’, a cultivated pork oil for hybrid meat.
Nutreco opened the “world’s first” dedicated food-grade production facility for cell feed. Cell feed is an alternative to traditional livestock feed, designed to reduce the high costs and environmental impacts associated of feeding animals for meat.
Mosa Meat hosted its first cultivated beef tasting in the EU. The hybrid patty— combining cultivated beef fat with a custom plant-based mix—was a raging success with one taster explaining “Usually I don’t eat meat, but I miss the taste of meat a lot, and this is the way to ultimately add it back to my diet, I hope.”
🧑Public Opinion
A British survey of 2000 people found consumers were increasingly more open to cell-based meat than a decade ago.
In 2012, 19% of consumers in the UK said they would be willing to eat cell-based meat. By 2024, this figure has grown to 26%. However, there is still a long way to go, with over 50% saying they would probably not eat it.
This builds on a European survey that found a growing portion of people believe cell-based meat should be made available if deemed safe.
💲 Raises
De Novo Foodlabs closed its seed funding round with a $1.5M investment to create a new protein identical to that found in milk.
🗺️Large Bites
🛑 Lawsuit against Florida’s ban on cultivated meat
The Institute for Justice filed a lawsuit challenging a newly enacted Florida law banning the production, distribution, and sale of cultivated meat. The lawsuit is partially backed by cultivated meat powerhouse Upside Foods.
😡 Nebraska Governor signs Executive Order against cultivated meat
Governor Jim Pillen (whose family owns a pig farm) put several restrictions on cultivated meat and plans to ban it in 2025. Pillen didn’t mince words saying “If there are Nebraskans that want to buy lab-grown meat, good for them. They’re just not going to do it in Nebraska.”
🥇 Foie gras included in first EI application for cultured meat
French startup Gourmey became the first company to apply for EU market access for cultivated meat. They’re starting with foie gras, a usually expensive meat linked to significant animal welfare concerns from force-feeding to fatten the liver to deliver the unique taste.
🚦UK greenlights Meatly pet food
The announcement in July makes it the first cultivated meat to be approved in Europe.
🦾New Products
Friends & Family Pet Food Co partnered with cultivated seafood start-up Umami Bioworks to rollout its vegan pet treats.
Further Food launched Noochies—a cultivated pet snack—in the US via the TikTok Shop.
CytoNest launched its first commercial product. Its 3D fiber scaffold is like the skeleton for cultivated meat.
📺Cultivated Watches
📑Cultivated Reads
What drives people away from cultivated meat? A recent study suggested it could be people’s morals, with Germans and Americans who care about the purity and naturalness of life are less inclined to eat these proteins.
📅Looking Ahead
The Cultured Meat Symposium is being held next month from September 12-13, 2024.