Myodenovo aims to grows cultivated meat using plant-based scaffolds

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Cultivated Meat

ProFuse Technology Unveils Innovation That Enables 48-Hour Cultivated Meat Growth

Israeli biotech ProFuse Technology, a company at the forefront of muscle tissue growth, announces a tech breakthrough that it claims will mark a new era of cultivated meat production. According to the company, it has developed a scaffolding 3D growth technology that, along with its cell culture media and growth protocols, can accelerate muscle growth time fivefold. ProFuse Technology claims this advancement allows cultivated meat production within 48 hours, reducing the usual time by 80%. Moreover, this innovation enhances the protein content of muscle tissue by five times that of traditional meat, resulting in a more protein-rich alternative and achieving these improvements without using genetic modification. Dr. Tamar Eigler Hirsh, CTO of ProFuse Technology, says: “ProFuse Technology’s proprietary media supplements and protocols achieve effective muscle production …

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A banner promoting Eat Just (GOOd Meat) cultivated chicken

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Studies & Numbers

Study Finds Singaporean Meat Consumers Prefer the Term ‘Cultivated Meat’

Researchers from Singapore Management University (SMU) conducted a study to determine what nomenclature used to describe cultivated meat would appeal to meat eaters, including consumers who have eaten cultivated meat in Singapore — the first country to approve the commercialization of a cultivated meat product (GOOD Meat’s cultivated chicken). According to the findings, among the terms ‘lab-grown meat’, ‘animal-free meat’, ‘cultured meat’, ‘clean meat’ or ‘cell-based meat’, ‘cultivated meat’ emerged as the preferred name and was strongly associated with positive attitudes toward this novel food.  “That ‘cultivated meat‘ was the preferred terminology is insightful. Having a single, universally accepted term to describe this novel food technology not only helps to foster greater consumer understanding and acceptance but also reduces confusion about this new food source,” says Professor Mark Chong, …

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Food tech leader TiNDLE Foods, formerly Next Gen Foods, announces an expansion into new categories (including milks, ice creams, and sausages) and a new brand identity

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Market & Trends

Singaporean Plant-Based Brands Expand Into Europe, Capitalizing on Growing Demand

Singaporean plant-based brands are increasingly taking advantage of rising demand elsewhere in the world to expand internationally, with a particular focus on Europe. The number of alt protein companies in Singapore has reportedly skyrocketed in recent years, as the country becomes increasingly concerned about food security and actively recruits scientists in the field. While the Singaporean alt protein market provides considerable opportunities, some companies are opting to make their success global. Among the most notable is plant-based chicken brand TiNDLE, which launched at hundreds of UK restaurants last year before rolling out at retail stores in the country this April. The brand is also available at thousands of EDEKA supermarkets in Germany. Another Singaporean brand, Growthwell Foods’ HAPPIEE! (which mostly focuses on seafood alternatives) arrived …

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CellX cultivated dish at demo

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Cultivated Seafood

China’s CellX is Confident it “Can Achieve Cost-Effective Mass Production of Cultivated Fish”

A month after announcing it had commenced operations at what it claims to be China’s first large-scale pilot plant for cultivated meat, CellX states this week it has made significant strides towards the industrial application of cultivated seafood. “Through the use of high-throughput equipment and systematic research methods for cell fate regulation, we achieved successful suspension differentiation of fish cells in only six months, which typically requires one to two years in the industry,” states CellX R&D Director Dr. Shuangshuang Chen in a press release. CellX secured $6.5 million in Series A+ funding this June to establish the pilot plant and has gone on to achieve a series of milestones in the three months that have passed. The company has now successfully completed the pilot …

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Meatafora meatballs

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Cultivated Meat

New Research Collaboration Accelerates Meatafora’s Product Development

Meatafora, an Israel-based cultivated meat company, announces its latest technological advancements, positioning the food tech company one step closer to a consumer product launch.  The company’s mission is to provide a premium cultivated meat product that is highly nutritious and cost-efficient using a scaleable process that it claims can reduce costs by up to 50 percent.  Unlocking new research The company’s recent collaboration with Technion Israel Institute of Technology has provided access to new research, which has been instrumental in Meatafora’s technological developments. The procurement of research breakthroughs from the leading research university has yielded two pivotal milestones for the company. The first involves the successful development of an oleogel fat substitute that replicates the characteristics of animal-derived fat while offering improved nutritional value. This …

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Shinsegae Food You Are What You Eat

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Company News

Korea’s Shinsegae Says “You Are What You Eat” With New Vegan Restaurant and Brand

South Korean food producer and catering provider Shinsegae Food has announced it is launching a new vegan restaurant and brand called You Are What You Eat. According to Pulse News, the fast-casual restaurant will open this month in the Gangnam district of the country’s capital, Seoul. It will reportedly offer options such as pasta, salads, and sandwiches, along with a range of other meals and desserts. The menu items will also be available in the form of ready meals for customers to take home. Shinsegae Food recently trialed the new concept with a food truck at the World Knowledge Forum. The truck served options made with the company’s plant-based Better Meat products, including kimchi fried rice with canned ham and pizza bread with sausages. Forum …

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HN Novatech has secured funding to commercialise its flagship seaweed-extracted heme for plant-based meat

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Investments & Finance

HN Novatech Secures $4 Million for Seaweed-Extracted Heme Meat Alternatives

South Korean food ingredient company HN Novatech announces it has secured $4 million in a Series-A bridge round to commercialize its flagship ingredient ACOM-S, a seaweed-extracted heme for plant-based meat applications. The round was led by VC Logan Ventures, which said it was partnering with HN Novatech to meet the global demand for clean-label meat alternatives. HN Novatech focuses on developing healthy, sustainable, and cutting-edge food ingredient alternatives and has filed 19 patents to date. It claims to be the first company in the world to extract heme-like molecules from seaweed and develop meat alternatives, such as burger patties (Korean BBQ beef), bulgogi, and sausages. Last month, in an event organized by the Singapore Tembusutech Innovation and KILSA Global, HN Novatech launched its seaweed-extracted heme for …

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Tempeh Today, Schouten Food

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Company News

Tempeh Today and Marel India Partner to Install Small-Scale Tempeh Fermentation Units

Henk Schouten, the CEO of plant-based protein company Schouten Europe, launched Tempeh Today in India in 2021, aiming to establish 100 small-scale fermentation units (SFUs) for tempeh production within five years. To reach these goals, CFSS B.V., the company behind Tempeh Today in India, and Marel India Pvt. Ltd. have announced a strategic partnership to boost tempeh production and continue to offer a sustainable solution for proteins in India. Marel India is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Marel, an international company that provides high-quality equipment, solutions, services, and software for the food processing industry.  Small and micro units for tempeh “The collaboration with Marel is a crucial next step in rolling out the concept. I am thrilled that Marel is supporting this initiative, and I look forward to our future …

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Israel's BioBetter has opened its first food-grade pilot facility to accelerate the production of growth factors

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Cultivated, Cell-Cultured & Biotechnology

BioBetter Opens Pilot Facility to Pave Way for Cultivated Meat through Molecular Farming

Israeli biotech startup BioBetter has opened its first food-grade pilot facility to accelerate the production of growth factors for the cultivated meat industry.  BioBetter pioneers a unique protein manufacturing platform that uses molecular farming to produce tobacco plant-derived growth factors (GFs) and bovine insulin-expressing plants. The company claims it has reached commercial-scale cultivation and can process 100 kg of tobacco plants daily at the new plant, aiming to process five tons by 2025. With these ambitious goals, the company has doubled its team to 50 workers to advance the plant’s operations, adhering to ISO2200 and HACCP standards. BioBetter says that since the plant meets all regulatory requirements for producing food-grade growth factors, it is awaiting approval from the Ministry of Health for food manufacturing licensing. “We stimulate …

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Steakholder cultivated steak on plate

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Company News

Steakholder Foods Submits Patent for Immortal Bovine Cell Line, Says “It’s a Paradigm Shift” for Future Food

Israeli deep tech Steakholder Foods Ltd., known for its 3D printing technology, yesterday announced it had submitted a provisional patent for immortal bovine cell lines, with the purpose of providing a stable, renewable source for generating different tissues. Steakholder announced back in August 2022 that it was working on the development of cultivated pork products using a new line of porcine stem cells. It states that this current move represents a “significant step in making commercial-scale cultivated meat production a reality”, claiming it paves the way for scale, repeatability, and growth. The patent is said to present immortal cell lines that can generate a broad array of tissues including both muscle and fat, and to enhance the growth capacity of bovine cells resulting in immortalization …

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GoodDot hosts Plant Protein Festival in partnership with Kenilworth Hotels

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Fairs & Events

India: GoodDot Partners With Kenilworth Hotels & Resorts for Plant Protein Festival

A plant protein festival took place in Kolkata, India this weekend (September 7-10) as part of a collaboration between plant-based company GoodDot and luxury resort operator Kenilworth Hotels & Resorts. The event took place at Aromas, a coffee shop at Kenilworth Kolkata, and allowed guests to sample a range of dishes made with GoodDot’s plant-based meat. These included chili, kebabs, Thai curries, rogan josh, and more. The aim of the festival was to showcase the flavor and versatility of plant-based proteins, while also raising awareness of the sustainability of plant-based diets. It comes after a report earlier this year found that there had been a “noticeable increase” in plant-based eating in India. “Acknowledging the pivotal role of alternative proteins in mitigating climate change, Kenilworth Kolkata …

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Politics & Law

COP28 Set to Finally Address Food System for Climate Change, Catering Will Be “Predominantly” Plant-Based

COP28, the annual UN environmental summit taking place this year in Dubai from November 30 to December 12, will emphasize the imperative of a global dietary shift to combat climate change, representing the first time the event has addressed food system change as part of climate disaster mitigation. Notably, unlike previous COP events, the COP28 Presidency has also committed to predominantly plant-based catering along with emissions labelling on food. Additionally, it will introduce a dedicated Food Day and mark the debut of the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) roadmap to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Furthermore, a coalition of NGOs will once again hold a Food4Climate Pavilion, marking the second time that COP has hosted the Pavilion, the only dedicated Pavilion to …

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SuperMeat's chicken cell line process meets Kosher meat Mehadrin standards

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Company News

SuperMeat’s Cultivated Chicken Receives Kosher Certification, Making Sustainable Proteins Accessible to Millions

Israeli startup SuperMeat announces that OU Kosher, the world’s largest kosher certification agency, has determined that its chicken cell line process meets Kosher meat Mehadrin standards — which are said to be the most stringent level of kosher supervision. This approval of SuperMeat’s cultivated chicken signifies a pivotal moment for developing novel foods and indicates a broad consensus among Jewish religious factions for the first time, explains SuperMeat. Furthermore, a Kosher certification provides access to sustainable meat for individuals worldwide who abide by religious dietary and food safety guidelines, and it opens the door for other certifications, such as Halal.   According to Co-founder and Executive Director of Agronomics, Jim Mellon: “This development opens up a considerable global market opportunity, with an estimated $11bn a year being spent …

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Steak MeaTech

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Printed Technology

Steakholder Foods Unveils Customizable 3D Modeling Software for Clients

Israeli deep-tech food company Steakholder Foods Ltd. (Nasdaq: STKH), known for its 3D bio-printing technologies, today announces the launch of its proprietary Light CAD Editor for use by clients. The software works alongside the company’s fusion printers, enabling clients to create, test, and optimize 3D models and fibrous textures for its 3D bioprinters, without the need for third-party software or extensive computer-aided design (CAD) training. After revealing the world’s first 3D bio-printed cultivated fish prototype — a ready-to-cook grouper fillet, printed with customized bio-inks utilizing grouper cells provided by Umami Meats — Steakholder (formerly MeaTech 3D) went on to announce in May its plans to provide 3D bioprinters and bioinks to B2B meat manufacturers and cultivated meat producers. Furthermore, this July the company signed a …

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Retail & E-Commerce

UNLIMEAT Furthers its Presence in US Natural and Organic Stores as K-Food Continues to Trend

South Korean plant-based meat brand UNLIMEAT expands its US retail footprint with increased presence in the Natural and Organic Market, as interest in K-Pop and K-Foods continues to trend globally. The fast-growing Asian company announces today the launch of its plant-based offerings into a list of natural and organic stores such as Mollie Stone’s Markets, Berkeley Bowl, Lassens Natural Foods & Vitamins in California, and Good Earth Markets in Utah.  The products introduced by UNLIMEAT in Natural & Organic stores consist of three SKUs: plant-based Korean BBQ; pulled pork; and Mandu, a large Korean-style dumpling. UNLIMEAT states that the expansion into said natural & organic stores marks its most significant achievement since its debut last winter into Albertsons, one of the largest supermarket chains in …

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Jonathan Goshen, CEO of Yeap and an employee

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Protein

Israel’s Yeap Receives Investment from Fermentation Expert Lessafre for Upcycled Yeast Proteins

Israeli startup Yeap announces that Lessafre, a global player in fermentation-derived products, has made a 10% investment in the company to introduce proteins made from upcycled spent yeast to the plant-based market. Yeap was founded by cultivated meat pioneer Didier Toubia, CEO of Aleph Farms, Dominik Grabinski, and Jonathan Goshen, CEO of Yeap, to develop sustainable proteins incorporating a circular economy model. Its shareholders include The Kitchen Hub by Strauss and AgFunder. The company already has several products in the pipeline and is a member of the Upcycled Food Association. Through the new partnership, Lessafre will assist Yeap in completing the development of these proteins made from upcycled yeast. Biospringer by Lesaffre, a leading producer of natural food ingredients extracted from yeast and other microorganisms, will oversee the collaboration. “The product under …

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John Hopkins College Studnents Alt Protein

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Fairs & Events

APAC Students Invited to Submit Ideas for Plant-Based Innovations for $10K Cash Prize

University students hailing from various corners of Asia are being presented with an incentive of $10,000 to devise novel, plant-based food solutions. The innovations are intended to both foster the expansion of the regional market for environmentally sustainable foods and contribute to the advancement of climate-conscious dietary choices. The competition, titled the ProVeg Food Innovation Challenge, is currently in its fourth consecutive year. Participating students are encouraged to channel their imagination through addressing some of the most pressing global predicaments of our time. “We really encourage as many university students as possible, from all disciplines, to take part in the Food Innovation Challenge 2023. Not only could they end up creating a great new food for the supermarket shelves and win a lot of money, …

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UMAMI Bioworks, previously Umami Meats, announces a business partnership with Maruha Nichiro-

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Cultivated Seafood

UMAMI Bioworks and Japan’s Largest Seafood Company Join Forces to Bring Cultivated Seafood to Market

Cultivated seafood company UMAMI Bioworks, previously Umami Meats, announces a business partnership with Maruha Nichiro (TYO: 1333), Japan’s largest seafood company. By joining forces, the companies aim to build the infrastructure of Japan’s cultivated seafood industry. As part of the agreement, Maruha Nichiro will invest in UMAMI Bioworks, gaining access to its cell cultivation platform for producing and selling cultivated seafood. The partnership also involves a multi-faceted collaboration to scale UMAMI Bioworks’ process. Mihir Pershad, CEO of UMAMI Bioworks, comments: “Our seminal partnership with Maruha Nichiro, a global leader in crafting beloved food products, is a pivotal step in achieving our mission of addressing the challenge of feeding a growing global population while minimizing environmental impact. We have the development and production technology, but we require experienced partners with …

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Singapore NTU scientists with jackfruit developments

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Sustainability / Environment

Singapore: Scientists Are Developing Sustainable Process to Produce Lactic Acid from Jackfruit Seeds

Scientists at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have developed a sustainable and effective technique to produce lactic acid using discarded jackfruit seeds. Lactic acid plays an indispensable role in the industrial production and preservation of many foods. It is used at various stages of making staple foods like bread, yogurt, cheese, kimchi, sauerkraut, and pickles. In 2022, around 1.5 million tons of lactic acid were produced worldwide. Lactic acid is added to dairy products to add flavor, controls the acidity of jams and canned fruit, and extends the shelf life of packaged meat products. When baking, lactic acid provides better texture and volume to the dough. In addition, lactic acid helps emulsify dressings and sauces and preserves the bright colors of fruit and vegetables. …

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Omni Seafood range OmniFoods

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Company News

What’s Been Happening at OmniFoods?

The Hong Kong-based company continues its efforts to remove animals from plates in various global markets. Let’s look at what OmniFoods has been up to recently.  United States In the United States, the recent launch of the Katsu OMNI Luncheon Musubi at 7-Eleven Hawaii received an impressive response, with the product selling out in just three days. The positive reaction secured it a place as a regular item at 7-Eleven Hawaii locations. OmniFoods is currently selling at Walmart, Whole Foods and Sprouts around the country, but it has also hit the shelves at Lily’s Vegan Grocery store in New York and at New Seasons Market locations where it has received a lot of good feedback already. The brand has plans to continue expanding its food …

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