Brett Thompson CEO Newform Foods

Brett Thompson, CEO Newform Foods, image supplied

Opinion

Op Ed: Brett Thompson, CEO Newform Foods, on Expanding the Definition of Meat

Brett Thompson founded Mzansi Meat Co., Africa’s first cultivated meat company, in the middle of lockdown, and the company became Newform Foods this summer after a rebrand and new strategy, redirecting its focus from being a consumer brand to offering meat cultivation technology. Here, Thompson explains that after spending time in the field of cellular agriculture, recently establishing a demonstration facility for cultivated meat products in Cape Town, he believes that we should alter the definition of meat, as cultivated products begin to enter mainstream consciousness and become part of our food system. Expanding the definition of meat By Brett Thompson After working in cultivated meat for four years, and over a decade in plant-based meat, my view on the definition of meat has drastically …

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Newform Foods partners with Project Assignments on a demonstration facility for cultivated animal products-

From left to right: Brett Thompson, co-founder and CEO of Newform Foods; Tasneem Karodia, co-founder and COO of Newform Foods; John Clayton, Managing Director at Project Assignments; and Gary Van Der Heyde, Operations Director at Project Assignments © Newform Foods

Company News

Newform Foods and Project Assignments Partner to Install Demo Facility for Cultivated Meat Products in Cape Town

South African companies, the biotech Newform Foods (previously Mzansi Meat) and the engineering giants Project Assignments have partnered to install a demonstration facility for cultivated meat products in Cape Town. According to the biotech’s announcement, it will be the largest of its kind in Africa, serving as a demonstration platform for Newform Food’s cutting-edge biotechnology at scale. The company, which claims to have a pioneering production model, aims to expand its business model by offering meat manufacturers, cultivated meat producers, and retailers, end-to-end solutions for developing cultivated meat in their existing facilities. The services will include tailored solutions such as media development, cell lines of interest, prototype development, and scaling (bioreactor plans). Collaborating with Project Assignments, Newform Foods will provide future customers with a platform for easy …

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Newform Foods partners with the Plenty Foundation

© Newform Foods

Cultivated Meat

Newform Foods Launches the Plenty Foundation to Fight Food Insecurity With Cultivated Protein

South Africa’s Newform Foods (previously Mzansi Meat) has launched the Plenty Foundation, a nonprofit aiming to address food insecurity and malnutrition in Africa through biotechnology. While plant-based proteins will be an important part of this strategy, the Foundation will also work with Newform Foods to enhance the taste and nutrition of plant-based foods with cultivated proteins. As part of its overall strategy to reduce undernourishment rates, the Plenty Foundation will combine philanthropy, commercial R&D, and market partnerships. Currently, the organization is pursuing its first funding round, while also aiming to form partnerships with a wide range of stakeholders. “The Plenty Foundation is more than just another not-for-profit; it’s a movement aimed at revolutionizing how we think about food and nutrition in Africa,” said founder Arturo …

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Newform meatballs

© Newform Foods

Marketing & Media

The Era of the Alt Protein Rebrand: Yet Another Cell Ag Company Reveals New Identity

Yesterday, South African cultivated meat company Mzansi Meat revealed on social media its new identity (see below). Mzansi’s rebrand comes as the next in line to a growing list of alternative protein companies undergoing transformation as such products enter the spotlight and become increasingly crucial as part of food system revolution and climate change action. Arguably, this wave of alt protein rebrands began back in May of 2021 when Memphis Meats became UPSIDE Foods, before going on to achieve incredible success which, as we all know, led to the company becoming one of the two pioneering cultivated meat producers granted permission to sell their novel cell-based chicken products to the US public. However this uptick has gained great pace over the past year or so, …

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