Ivy Farm to Bring First Cultured Sausages to UK Supermarkets by 2023 & Produce 12,000 Tonnes of Cultured Pork Per Year

Ivy Farm Technologies aims to become the first commercial producer of sustainable, cultured meat in the UK. Co-founder Russ Tucker, originally from a family of butchers, says the startup plans to produce cultured sausages for supermarkets and restaurants by 2023, followed by meatballs and beefburgers, with plans to produce up to 12,000 tonnes of cultured pork per year by 2025, the equivalent of saving 170,000 pigs from slaughter.

Ivy Farm’s non-GMO production process uses technology developed at Oxford University, in the same building that developed the Covid-19 vaccine.

“Already nearly half the worldwide harvest is required to feed livestock and that’s only going to go up. Cultured meat is the silver bullet – through cutting edge technology we can provide real, high-quality meat while saving the planet. Ivy Farm will be great for the environment, great for meat lovers^†† and great for animals as there’s no slaughter.” 

In a press release sent to vegconomist, Ivy Farms says it “has ambitions to put Britain on the map in the emerging global industry by producing products made from meat that has been made without GM additives, antibiotics or the need to slaughter animals (beginning with a guilt-free sausage) for supermarkets and the restaurant trade from 2023.”

Ivy Farm has launched a fundraising campaign with a target of £16 million to build a pilot research and development facility, as the first step on the road to commercial production of cultured pork in the UK. Ivy Farm aims to address the serious environmental impacts of the conventional livestock industry.

Dr Tucker believes that cultured meat is not only better for the planet, but it’s better for consumers as their process doesn’t use GM techniques or antibiotics. Ivy Farm is confident it will co-exist with progressive, traditional farming methods, offering an opportunity to re-shape the traditional UK farming system, and ensure it is ready to deal with 21st century pressures.

The startup carried out research which found two thirds of people said they’d be happy to try cultured meat – and more than half said they’d be willing to buy it, demonstrating a huge potential market in the UK.

“Already nearly half the worldwide harvest is required to feed livestock and that’s only going to go up. Cultured meat is the silver bullet – through cutting edge technology we can provide real, high-quality meat while saving the planet. Ivy Farm will be great for the environment, great for meat lovers^†† and great for animals as there’s no slaughter.”