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SINGAPORE: Singaporean consumers will soon be able to sample lab-grown or grown chicken after Eat Just food technology has received the go-ahead to sell the product here.
Announcing this on Wednesday (December 2), Eat Just said that Singapore authorities have given its farmed chicken “the world’s first regulatory approval.” It will be used as an ingredient in their “chicken bites” or nuggets that the company plans to release at a later date.
This would likely be the first time globally that a cultivated meat product has been sold commercially, said the Singapore Food Agency (SFA), which released new guidelines on Wednesday to ensure the safety of food inventions.
READ: Singapore introduces safety rules for new food inventions as demand for meat substitutes grows
Cell-based or cultured meat is meat grown in laboratories using animal cells.
San Francisco-based Eat Just, which is known for its plant-based egg substitutes, said no antibiotics were used in its product.
He added that safety testing found that his farmed chicken had “extremely low microbiological content and significantly cleaner” than traditional chicken.
“The analysis also showed that farmed chicken contains a high protein content, a diversified amino acid composition, a relative high content of healthy monounsaturated fats and is a rich source of minerals,” he said.
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In a press release, the company said it took “many months” for its team of scientists, product developers and regulatory experts to register the farmed chicken production process, information that is required under SFA rules.
“The company documented the purity, identity and stability of the chicken cells during the manufacturing process, as well as a detailed description of the manufacturing process that demonstrated that the harvested cultured chicken complied with quality controls and a rigorous monitoring system of food safety, “Eat Just said.
MADE IN SINGAPORE
The farmed chicken was manufactured at the Center for Food Innovation and Resources, a food research center co-led by the Singapore Polytechnic and Enterprise Singapore.
“Singapore has long been a leader in innovation of all kinds, from information technology to biologicals, and is now a world leader in building a healthier and safer food system,” said Josh Tetrick, Co-Founder and CEO from Eat Just explaining why Singapore was chosen as the first place to launch its chicken product.
“I am confident that our regulatory approval for cultured meat will be the first of many in Singapore and in countries around the world.”
Josh Tetrick, co-founder and CEO of Eat Just, said Singapore’s support for food technology led him to choose the country as the launch pad for the company’s first farmed chicken product. (Photo: Eat Just)
Mr. Tetrick said his company seeks to offer the product in a restaurant first before distributing it to the mass market, adding that it will be priced similarly to what consumers pay for “premium chicken” in restaurants.
The cell-based chicken costs cannot be disclosed for intellectual property reasons, he said. But he expects his chicken to be below the prices of its conventional counterpart “for years to come.”
Other ingredients used in chicken nuggets include breadcrumbs and mung bean protein, which is also used in their plant-based eggs.
The company said it plans to introduce other farmed chicken products in the future.
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Eat Just, which was founded in 2011, announced in October a partnership with private equity firm Proterra Investment Partners Asia to build a $ 120 million plant protein factory in Singapore, the company’s first in Asia.
The egg substitute maker, which counts business tycoon Li Ka-Shing and venture capital firms Khosla Ventures among its investors, is trying to raise at least $ 200 million that could give it a valuation of $ 2 billion. dollars, in what could be its last round of fundraising before going public, Bloomberg reported in October.
READ: Plant-based egg producer Eat Just to build factory in Singapore
Meat substitutes have become more popular in recent years, fueled by growing concerns about the environmental impact of animal husbandry and the sustainability of meat production as the world’s population increases.
A 2019 report by Barclays predicted that the global alternative meat market, currently valued at $ 14 billion, or 1 percent of the $ 1.4 trillion meat industry, could be worth 10 times more (about $ 140 billion). dollars) by 2029.
Local protein replacement startups have also gained traction recently.
On Sunday, Float Foods said it would introduce an egg substitute made from legumes in the first quarter of 2022. And last month, Shiok Meats unveiled its lab-grown lobster meat. The cultured meat producer said it aims to launch its products by 2022.
