BioCraft Pet Nutrition, formerly Because, Animals, states it is pioneering AI to reduce costs and accelerate the development of cultivated meat for the pet food market.
BioCraft claims to have developed a new proprietary AI tool that supports R&D in finding nutrient inputs, giving it an edge in achieving optimal cell proliferation, thus expediting production. Using AI, the company conducts fewer and more focused experiments to improve cell growth and enhance the nutritional value of cultivated meat.
“The main costs and time sinks on the way to commercialization are R&D-related, and our AI has substantially streamlined this process, accelerated our progress, and reduced costs,” said BioCraft founder and CEO Dr. Shannon Falconer.
BioCraft’s AI collects and processes data from publicly available scientific papers and databases. Subsequently, it synthesizes this data to identify potential nutrient inputs that enhance cell growth, nutrient biosynthesis, or other biological processes critical to cultivated meat production. Additionally, the AI platform can identify cost-effective inputs and ingredients less likely to face regulatory concerns.
“In this application, AI can surpass the human brain for speed and efficiency, and helps us derive more complex conclusions by making more connections between more facts,” adds Falconer.
Cultivated meat for pets
BioCraft Pet Nutrition supplies pet food manufacturers with sustainable and ethical cultivated meat, ensuring a stable supply chain. Its novel ingredients are a one-to-one replacement for meat slurry in pet foods, including wet and dry products, treats, and fresh options.
The company’s flagship product is cultivated mouse meat for cats. To expand its portfolio, Biocraft launched a cell line for cultivated chicken — the pet food market’s favorite meat.
According to the biotech, cultivated meat provides pets with all the necessary nutrients. It contains all the required proteins, vitamins, fats, and amino acids, including taurine. Additionally, its production avoids chemical and bacterial pollutants, antibiotics, steroids, or hormones typically found in traditional meat.
“The demand for pet foods — specifically, meat-based pet food — is on the rise; but the supply chain for meat is increasingly precarious, both in terms of price volatility and stock outs. Pet food manufacturers are desperate for a more stable alternative, so with increasing infrastructure to produce cultured meat for pet food, the sky’s the limit in this industry,” Falconer told vegconomist in a recent interview.
