NEW TECH FOODS

Magic Valley and Biocellion have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to collaborate and gain a clearer understanding of cellular behaviour in bioreactors, and improve bioreactor design and increase efficiency in the production of cultivated meat products.

Magic Valley is an Australian cultivated meat company. The process of its production involves taking a small skin biopsy from a live animal, culturing the cells in foetal bovine serum-free media, reprogramming them into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and then characterising and differentiating the cells into muscle and fat within bioreactors. This results in a real animal meat product, however, no animals are killed, and no animal products are used aside from the initial cell biopsy.

Magic Valley believes itself to be the first company in the world to create animal component-free cultivated lamb from iPSC, and it has recently debuted a prototype cultivated pork dumpling.

Biocellion, headquartered in Washington State, US, supports life science companies in making the transition to virtual experiments, which are computer simulations of living system behaviours, modelled cell by cell. These forms of experiments are said to be faster, cheaper and less wasteful than laboratory experiments.

Hong Kong-based global venture accelerator, Brinc, strategically supports Magic Valley and Biocellion. Manav Gupta, founder and CEO of Brinc, said: "As a keen advocate of food technology innovation, Brinc proudly supports the collaboration between Magic Valley and Biocellion, which represents a significant step towards addressing the challenges of sustainable protein production. This partnership showcases the potential that interdisciplinary solutions can play to reshape the future of the food industry."

Paul Bevan, CEO and founder of Magic Valley, said that the company is committed to revolutionising the way meat is produced, with a “focus on sustainability and ethical practices”.

He added: "By collaborating with Biocellion, we aim to unlock valuable insights into cellular behaviour, enabling us to create delicious cultivated meat products efficiently at scale".

"We're excited to collaborate with Magic Valley using our advanced virtual experiments technology in order to accelerate the development of bioreactor designs and drive efficiency in cultivated meat production,” said Simon Kahan, CEO of Biocellion. “Together, we are shaping a future where technology and biology converge to address global protein demands."