Cultivated meat, or lab-grown meat, is a revolutionary food technology for environmentally and ethically conscious meat. It's not grown on farms but rather in bioreactors using animal cells. These cells are fed a nutrient solution, allowing them to multiply and differentiate into muscle tissue, replicating the texture and taste of conventional meat. The technology’s journey to commercial development could improve farm efficiency and re-adjust the current disparity between having 77% of the world’s farmed land produce only 18% of our calories.
As demand for traditional meat reduces due to consumer concerns surrounding animal welfare, environmental impact, and antibiotic resistance, cultivated meat presents a possible avenue for resurgence. For example, traditionally, creating meat from growing and feeding animals requires nine calories to get one calorie out for chickens, and 15 calories in for pigs, and the numbers are closer to 30 calories for every calorie out for cows. Growing meat directly is vastly more efficient, as one calorie of cultivated meat can be created using only a 2-3 total calorie input. Furthermore, land could be used up to 300% more efficiently for cultivated meat than traditional poultry farming and as much as 4000% more efficiently than beef farming, benefiting biodiversity and the climate. Removing current requirements for animals to live in close confinement would be advantageous to animal welfare as well as limit the risk of contamination (incl. microplastics) and disease, reducing the risk of zoonotic pandemics and the need for antibiotics in meat production – currently 50% of all antibiotics are used for rearing animal livestock, exacerbating issues of antibiotic-resistance.
Market analysts predict a booming future for cultivated meat in the face of a consumer shift towards sustainable and ethical food choices. Many reports suggest that the market will grow with a CAGR of at least 16% over the next 10 years, and McKinsey’s analysts claim the industry will reach $25 billion by 2030. However, this growth has significant headwinds as the industry has a long way to go before producing a commercial, mass-market product. After all, when the first cultured beef burger was created at Maastricht University in 2013, it cost $325,000 and took two years to produce. While these costs have reduced significantly (~99%), cultivated meat remains scarce due to the industry's inability to scale up production effectively. The key hurdles in reducing costs to compete with traditional meat lie in several areas.
- Firstly, there's a shortage of bioreactors designed specifically for cultivated meat production, necessitating more tailored infrastructure.
- Additionally, raw materials used for cultivated meat aren't optimised for efficiency and are often repurposed from other industries, resulting in higher costs.
- Further utilising advanced technologies, potential AI applications for improving bioreactor efficiency, for example, could help achieve competitive pricing and create meat products that mimic traditional forms more closely.
As this industry expands, the role of the Testing, Inspection, and Certification (TIC) sector will become increasingly crucial.
The Existing Regulatory Landscape
Currently, the regulatory landscape for cultivated meat is still evolving. Traditional meat safety regulations established for farm-raised animals may not entirely apply to this new production method. However, some existing regulations and certification standards are already being considered:
- Food safety: Regulatory bodies like the FDA and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) are responsible for ensuring the safety of all food products, including cultivated meat. Some cultivated meat producers have already begun their regulatory approval process. Cultivated B’s cultivated sausage is undergoing the EFSA’s Novel Food regulatory approval process. Additionally, regulatory bodies will likely focus on areas like cell line selection, potential contaminants in the growth medium, and the risk of introducing novel pathogens. The Food Standards Agency has already outlined a pathway for lab-grown meat to gain cell-cultivated product status in Great Britain, a prerequisite for its authorisation under either novel or GMO regulations. This authorisation is one that any cultivated meat supplier must achieve before their products are placed on the market.
- Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs): Existing GMPs for food production facilities will likely be adapted for cultivated meat production. These standards, guidelines and procedures relating to sanitation, hygiene, and quality control measures can more easily be improved for cultivated meats beyond their traditionally farmed counterparts. We are also beginning to see the emergence of new industry-specific GMPs. For example, in the USA and generally applicable FDA regulations, cultivated meat companies must conduct hazard analyses and implement risk-based preventive controls.
- Labelling: Transparency and consumer trust are paramount. Labelling regulations will likely require explicitly identifying cultivated meat products, differentiating them from conventionally raised meat. It will be interesting to see whether labelling regulations permit cultivated meat labels to use terms such as “beef”, “pork”, and “lamb” or whether it will follow in the same vein as oat, almond, and soy dairy alternatives, which do not permit labels of these drinks to label themselves with the word “milk” – even if colloquially we are far more likely to say “oat milk” than “oat drink”.
Evolving Standards for a New Industry
In addition to correctly applying existing standards such as ISO 22000 for food safety management, the TIC sector must adapt and develop new standards specific to cultivated meat production. Some potential areas of focus include:
- Cell line characterisation: Regulatory bodies must ensure the source and genetic stability of the animal cells used in cultivated meat production. This will minimise the risk of unintended mutations or contamination.
- Growth media composition: The nutrient solution used to feed the cells must be rigorously tested to ensure it's free of contaminants and doesn't introduce any potential allergens into the final product.
- Scalability and consistency: Cultivated meat production must be scalable to meet market demands while maintaining consistent product quality. The TIC industry must develop standards for monitoring and controlling large-scale bioreactor processes.
- Novel ingredients: Some cultivated meat companies are exploring using plant-based scaffolding materials to give the meat structure. The safety and functionality of these novel ingredients will need to be carefully assessed.
The TIC Industry's Future Bite
The emergence of cultivated meat presents challenges and opportunities for the TIC sector. Here's how it might reshape the industry:
- Increased demand for specialised testing: New testing methods will be needed to evaluate factors specific to cultivated meat production. This creates a demand for skilled personnel and advanced testing equipment.
- Rise of specialised certification bodies: As new standards emerge, specialised certification bodies may develop expertise in cultivated meat production, offering a competitive edge.
- Harmonisation of global standards: As cultivated meat production expands globally, the need for harmonised international regulations and certification standards will become increasingly important. TIC bodies can play a vital role in facilitating this process. This may be an optimistic pipedream, given that no such harmonisation has occurred before for traditional meat. Currently, an ‘Innovate UK’ sponsored partnership (incl. Multus, Vireo Advisors, Extracellular, Aberystwyth University, New Harvest and the BSI) is working on new safety rules for the USA, Singapore, UK and the EU by developing safety testing methods that advance the regulatory assessment of cultivated meat and development of global standards.
- A new level of traceability: Cultivated meat has the potential to enhance food traceability significantly through its production process. Unlike traditional meat production, which involves complex supply chains and numerous intermediaries, cultivated meat can be produced in controlled environments with precise monitoring at every stage. This controlled environment allows for detailed tracking of inputs, such as cell sources and growth media, and environmental conditions, such as temperature and humidity. Additionally, advanced technologies such as blockchain can be integrated into the production process to create immutable records of each step, providing consumers with transparent and trustworthy information about the origin and journey of their food. Overall, cultivated meat can offer a more transparent and traceable supply chain, which is more easily certified by TIC players, ensuring greater accountability and safety for consumers.
Overall, cultivated meat presents a fascinating opportunity for the TIC industry, and it is essential to remember that the prospects for TIC extend beyond just human food consumption. For example, in 2023, Bene Meat Technologies became the first company to be awarded EU certification in the European Feed Materials Register for laboratory-grown meat for use in pet food. By embracing innovation and developing robust, science-based standards, the TIC sector can play a critical role in ensuring the safety and quality of this revolutionary food technology, creating new opportunities for business while paving the way for a more sustainable and ethical food system. However, those TIC players who are slower to adapt need to be cautious that the rise of this industry and its applicable standards could correspond with a loss/displacement of their own current agricultural/organic/food certification activity.
