NEW TECH FOODS

Pureture, (formerly Armored Fresh Technologies), a US biotech specialising in the production of functional animal-free ingredients, has partnered with Namyang Dairy Products. Namyang produces milk, yogurt, cheese, cream and butter, for markets in more than 20 countries. The dairy giant will use Pureture’s plant-based casein to develop and introduce a new plant-based dairy range to offer consumers sustainable options. Pureture says it has developed the “world’s first” non-GMO plant-based casein. The protein is yeast-derived and enables manufacturers to develop clean-label, dairy-free products without additives, emulsifiers, or binders, according to the biotech company. Pureture aims to reach a manufacturing capacity of 2,400 tons to meet growing demand. It says it offers a “competitive price,” which is around 30-40% lower than the average cost of casein. Rudy Yoo, founder and CEO of Pureture, said: “Our mission at Pureture is to develop technologies and further foods that will contribute to a more sustainable future, and we couldn’t be prouder to partner with Namyang with this breakthrough protein, working closely with them as they grow their plant-based offering.” Myko Kihyun Nam, CMO at Namyang Dairy Products, commented: “With the partnership with Pureture, we will now be able to offer dairy-free, 100% plant-based products without any sacrifice from the consumers regarding taste, nutrition, and cost". Pureture has also announced that it is finalising a $12 million seed funding round that will support the brand's development and build out its manufacturing facility. #Pureture #Namyang #SouthKorea

On behalf of the Dutch Government, Cellular Agriculture Netherlands Foundation (CANS) has launched an independent expert committee to evaluate requests by companies to conduct tastings of cell-based meat and seafood. Now, Dutch companies can hand in their dossiers to request approvals to hold tastings, paving the way to holding the first approved cell-based tastings in Europe. In June last year, the Netherlands became the first country in the European Union to make pre-approval tastings of cultivated food possible. Dutch cultivated pork start-up Meatable has submitted a dossier, expecting to organise its first tasting of its call-based pork product soon. The new committee includes a toxicologist, microbiologist, physician and an ethical expert. They will evaluate requests by companies to conduct tastings of cell-based meat and seafood in controlled environments, a significant step forward to enabling tastings in Europe. Krijn de Nood, co-founder and CEO at Meatable, said: “This is another important step forward in approving cultivated meat. The Netherlands has long been the pioneer of cultivated meat which is further cemented by this latest development, and we thank the Dutch Government, CANS and [Dutch biotech industry association] HollandBIO for their joint efforts to make this possible.” “We’re delighted that we have already handed in our dossier for approval and look forward to holding our first tastings in the Netherlands soon. We can’t wait to invite people to try our delicious pork sausages and experience for themselves that it doesn’t just look and taste like meat, it is meat.” The tasting approval process Under the Code of Practice, cell-based food companies can hand in their dossiers, including information about their product and necessary safety documents, to apply for approval to hold tastings. The expert committee will investigate the documents and provide feedback. The committee will then approve for tastings to take place or request more information. When approvals have been granted, the respective company is required to hold a tasting session in a controlled environment, which is suitable for food preparation and inaccessible to the general public. The news today will help cell-based food comapnies develop their products and enable education about cultivated meat. Tastings enable consumers to experience the taste and texture of the novel foods and understand that it looks like, tastes like and has the same nutritional profile as traditional meat, as well as educate people about the role cell-based meat can play in meeting sustainability goals. Maarten Bosch, CEO of Mosa Meat, commented: “We are thrilled to see the protocol developed in consultation with the government is now being implemented. Mosa Meat will be applying soon to host the first legal tastings of our cultivated beef. The Netherlands continues to be a global leader in sustainable food innovation, even as others in Europe appear to be taking a step backwards at the height of our climate and biodiversity crises.” Kianti Figler, CEO of Upstream Foods, added: “At Upstream Foods, we’re thrilled about the Netherlands taking the initiative in pre-approved tastings for cultivated food. This is a pivotal moment for the Dutch cultivated meat and seafood ecosystem. We are dedicated to revolutionising seafood alternatives through fish fat cultivation, and this initiative empowers us to showcase our innovative approach.” #Meatable #theNetherlands #MosaMeat #UpstreamFoods #tasting

Israel-based food-tech start-up Imagindairy has acquired a new facility and is operating its own industrial-scale precision fermentation production lines. Imagindairy says it is the “first” company in the industry to achieve this milestone, fully owning and operating its own industrial-scale production lines dedicated solely to animal-free milk proteins. The facility, located in the Middle East, enables Imagindairy to produce its animal-free dairy proteins at more than 100,000 litres of fermentation capacity, with planned capacity expansion to triple this volume in the next one to two years. Imagindairy is currently producing industrial-scale batches in the facility at a competitive cost structure to traditional dairy. Eyal Afergan, Imagindairy’s co-founder and CEO, said: “Having just entered the landscape three years ago, this achievement is a big step forward for us. We’ve overcome industry-wide hurdles that have previously been holding precision fermentation dairy back, including the production capacity bottleneck and ensuring that unit economics make sense across the supply chain.” He continued: “This will enable our customers to put animal-free dairy products on-shelf at cost parity to traditional dairy, without compromising on quality. It’s a substantial breakthrough and important step that will allow us to support mass-market adoption, transition to an industrial company, and speed up the development of other milk proteins.” This achievement comes on the heels of another major company milestone, as Imagindairy received a “no questions” response letter from the US Food & Drug Administration last month for the Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) notice submitted by the company. This signifies that the ingredient is safe to be used in F&B products, providing a regulatory ‘green light’ for food and beverage manufacturers to partner with Imagindairy. Imagindairy can now offer the most efficient manufacturing and end-to-end capabilities, extending through in-market product availability. Products made using Imagindairy’s animal-free dairy protein are expected to be launched in the US in the coming year. #Imagindairy #US

2023 signified several major news updates in the cell-based food sector. Below are five of the most popular stories from The Cell Base. Ayana Bio opens new laboratory to commercialise cultivated ingredients July saw plant cell technology company Ayana Bio announce the opening of a new lab situated in Boston’s Seaport district in Massachusetts, US. The lab will serve as a hub to advance Ayana Bio’s plant cell-cultivated production systems to create a diverse range of cost-effective and high-quality health, wellness and nutrition ingredients. Ayana Bio says the new facility will help it to overcome previous industry challenges through better cell lines and a multi-product production system. The technology will make plant cell-cultivated ingredients scalable through its proprietary hardware and production process that can accommodate a variety of cell lines simultaneously. Ayana Bio says the facility “solidifies [its] commitment to transforming the future of sustainable ingredients in one of the world’s most innovative scientific research and development hubs”. GEA inaugurates new innovation centre for alt-proteins In June, international tech group GEA inaugurated its new Food Application and Technology Center of Excellence (ATC) in Hildesheim, Germany. The ATC houses a pilot plant for the production of sustainable alternatives to meat, milk, seafood and eggs, through microbial fermentation and cell cultivation. At the new technology centre, GEA’s food experts will use a cell cultivation and fermentation pilot line to fast-track innovations from the lab to commercial-scale manufacturing. The new testing platform at the ATC is designed to bridge the gap between the test bench and industrial-scale production without customers having to invest in a large-scale plant from the outset. CellRev and BSF Enterprise’s 3D Bio-Tissues to form cell-based meat JV This month saw UK-based tissue engineering company 3D Bio-Tissues (3DBT) and its sister company Kerato, owned by BSF Enterprise, announce a new a joint venture with continuous cell manufacturing biotech CellRev. The JV will focus on developing, and offering to the market, an end-to-end solution for manufacturing cell-based meat at scale. Named Cultivated Meat Technologies (CMT), the JV will combine CellRev’s continuous bioprocessing expertise, which facilitates faster, cheaper and more sustainable production of muscle cells, with 3DBT’s know-how in forming meat tissue and its City-Mix animal-free cell culture supplement. CMT aims to provide the market with the premier platform for manufacturing cell-based meat in a scalable and cost-competitive manner. It will focus on upstream and downstream processes, providing scale-up capabilities for cell-based meat production. Initially, CMT will begin with the development of the processes and technology needed to showcase cell-based meat fillets, manufactured in a scalable manner, that can translate into a mass production facility. ICA and Re:meat explore cell-based meat’s potential in Sweden In November, Swedish food chain ICA and Re:meat have partnered to explore the market potential for cell-based meat in Sweden. Together, the companies will initiate a pilot project to study cell-based meat in an experimental environment, pending its EU approval as a safe-to-consumer food product. Initially, the collaboration will explore consumer's attitudes to cell-based meat. Together, ICA and Re:meat will work to define the necessary conditions to create demand from a sustainability perspective. In a statement, ICA said: “It is already clear that the taste, price and nutritional value of the meat will be critical factors, but there are more perspectives, for example how the consumer views cell-based meat”. Jacob Peterson, Re:meat’s CEO, commented: “Our vision is that all people should be able to enjoy good, nutritious and sustainable meat. For Re:meat, collaboration across the value chain is important to succeed in changing both the industry and what the consumer chooses to cook and put on their plate.” Cultzyme opens investment round for intelligent bioreactor development In October, bioprocessing solution provider Cultzyme opened an investment round to fund the development and commercialisation of its intelligent bioreactor. The firm’s intelligent R&D bioreactor, BION (Bioreactor Intelligent Operative Nanotechnology), integrates the latest hardware, AI and quantum computing to deliver precise control of reaction conditions, real-time monitoring and optimisations and scalable methods. The intelligent bioreactors are said to overcome the greatest challenges in bioprocessing, empowering R&D driven businesses to produce high-quality bio-tech products efficiently and effortlessly. Cultzyme aims to target 10% of the global reusable bioreactor market by 2028 and is seeking investment to support this. The company says it will use the additional funding to facilitate the continued development of BION, support the expansion of partnerships with leading organisations, and enable commercialisation of the product in this high-growth market.

2023 signified several major news updates in the cell-based food sector. Below are the top five most popular stories from The Cell Base. The Cultivated B’s industrial-grade bioreactor signals commercial viability for cellular agriculture  In July, Germany-based biotech The Cultivated B (TCB) announced the availability of its AUXO V industrial-grade bioreactor and the start of rapid-delivery manufacturing at its plant in Burlington, Ontario, Canada. TCB intends to bridge the barrier to industry growth with bioreactor delivery times of only “a few weeks,” – compared to delivery times from other vendors that can be as much as two years – as well as novel, easy-to-use designs that make equipment operator training and skills transfer efficient.    TCB’s AUXO V bioreactors have been engineered by industrial designers to make them easy to use by non-experts. Using a human-machine interface and programmable logic controller system from Siemens, production personnel can be trained to use the bioreactor control system in days. AUXO V bioreactors are made of high-grade stainless steel, which makes them sterilisable and reusable.    According to TCB, the “AUXO V multi-use bioreactor vessels are cost-effective, flexible and customisable”. They are available in a wide range of sizes from lab scale to industrial scale – up to 25,000 litres – and are equipped with multiple sensors and impellers for different organisms, such as animal cells, bacteria or yeast.    Synonym Bio launches techno-economic analysis calculator Scaler  New York-based financing and development platform for biomanufacturing facilities, Synonym Bio, announced the launch of Scaler in July .   Scaler is a “first-of-its-kind” fully interactive, free online tool enabling synthetic biology companies to project their costs of production and operations at a commercial scale.  Synonym says that Scaler’s straightforward dynamic interface allows any company that is developing a bioproduct through fermentation to overcome the challenge of building and operating profitably at a commercial scale.  By inputting a few production variables, the technology works to instantly provide users with a customised techno-economic analysis with insights into projecting costs to build and operate a facility at scale, identifying a bioproduct’s biggest profitability drivers and understanding levers of commercial adoption.  UK to fast-track approval of cell-based meat with Israel deal  October saw the UK government unveil plans that it is working to fast-track regulatory approval for cell-based meat to boost food security and sustainability.    Ministers and regulators have been working to accelerate the approval of the novel food to ease the cost of living and provide more sustainable sources of meat as the global population grows.    Currently, no cell-based meat is authorised for sale in the UK. However, it has been reported that the UK government is poised to sign a bilateral agreement to boost collaboration on cell-based meat with Israel, a country at the forefront of the movement.  The Food Standards Agency is also said to be considering future changes to the approval process of cell-based meat to remove unnecessary burdens on businesses.     Re:meat announces plans to expand cell-based beef production  In July, Swedish cell-based meat company Re:meat introduced plans to construct Scandinavia’s “first-ever” cell-based beef plant and unveiled the country's first prototype – a Swedish meatball.  The initial pilot plant will hold a capacity of 30 tonnes per year, with the company anticipating that over the next five years, Re:meat's commercial factories will be able to produce over 10,000 tonnes of cell-based beef annually.   Re:meat aims to significantly reduce production costs by replacing the majority of its media nutrients with hydrolysates sourced from low-cost feedstock and algae. It says it has developed a foetal bovine serum alternative that will allow it to direct its resources toward increasing production and to launch its large-scale production pilot facility next year.   BioBetter opens food-grade pilot facility in northern Israel  In September, BioBetter opened a food-grade pilot facility in northern Israel . BioBetter has pioneered a unique protein manufacturing platform for producing growth factors (GFs) that uses tobacco plants as self-sustained, animal-free bioreactors.   By turning tobacco plants into “natural bioreactors,” the start-up says it could bring the cost of GFs for cell-based meat down from the normal range of $50,000-$1 million per gram to just $1 per gram.  The process – that uses only water, CO2 and sunlight – can produce various bovine GFs, including FGF2, transferrin and insulin. The company’s newly established plant has the capacity to process 100kg of tobacco plant-derived GFs daily with several thousand square metres of bovine-insulin and FGF2-expressing tobacco plants already thriving in northern Israel.  BioBetter’s chief R&D officer, Yonatan Eran explained how “tobacco grows on every continent besides Antarctica” and that “tobacco plants can reach 2.5 metres tall in less than three months.”  Co-founder Dana Yarden added: “We can grow tobacco four times per year, with a high yield, and when you cultivate the crop, it grows back. Nothing goes to waste. We remove the nicotine, which can be used as a natural pesticide, and the remaining material can be used as animal feed or even used within construction.”

As the end of the year approaches, we wanted to wish you all a wonderful festive period and a Happy New Year. We look forward to keeping you updated with the latest news and innovations in the cell-based food sector and we are excited to see what will unfold in the industry during 2024. With love, the FoodBev Media team.

This year, South African cell-based meat company Newform Foods brought the cell-based meat discussion to the Dubai Future Forum – an annual event hosted by the Dubai Future Foundation. Newform Foods hosted a tasting of its cell-based lamb meatballs at the annual event, which it says is “the largest of its kind in the Gulf region”. Brett Thompson, CEO and co-founder of Newform Foods, said: “It was an honour to showcase some of the work we’ve been doing over the last few months with a global audience at the Dubai Future Forum 2023. We’ve been doing tastings since our first burger launch in April 2022 and this was by far the largest. We’d like to extend a massive thank you to the Dubai Future Foundation for having us and for the opportunity to show the world what we’re cooking up for the future." The meatballs were available on a limited basis to 20 guests attending the forum. Ahmed Khan, founder and editor, Cell Agri, commented: “It has been incredible to follow Newform Foods’ journey through the years and get the opportunity to taste their cultivated lamb meatball at the Dubai Future Forum. The lamb meatball tasted great and had a gamey meat flavour." Joelene Lum, head of business development at Nurasa, added: “The flavour and the texture had the aftertaste of actual lamb. The meatball even had the slight toughness of lamb which added to the bite. I’ve tried cultivated meat before, but this was by far the most mind-blowing experience I’ve had with cultivated meat." The tasting comes after Newform Foods’ announcement last month, that it was partnering with Project Assignments to develop a scalable demonstration facility for cell-based meat products. Once complete, the facility – which will be based in Cape Town, South Africa – will be the largest of its kind in Africa. #NewformFoods #Dubai #SouthAfrica

Exciting news! The World Cell-based Innovation Awards has just announced its first winners for this year's competition, and we couldn't be more thrilled! As we continue to move towards a more sustainable and environmentally friendly future, these awards are designed to celebrate those who are innovating within the cell-based food space. And with categories covering innovations in meat, dairy and technology, we can't wait to announce the winners! 2023 Winners Cell-based Drink ​ Senara – Senara Milk Cultivated Meat ​ TissenBioFarm – Whole-cut cultivated beef with marbling Cultivated Dairy Product ​ BIOMILQ – Cell cultured human milk ​Cell-based Seafood ​ Umami Bioworks – Cultivated grouper fillet Cell-based Ingredient C16 Biosciences – Palmless palm oil alternative Technology Innovation ​The Cultivated B – AUXO V bioreactors ​Cell-based Business BioBetter – BioBov 2023 Finalists Ever After Foods – Bioreactor that breaks scalability barriers Onego Bio – Bioalbumen – precision fermented egg protein BioBetter – BioBov insulin Multus – Proliferum M serum-free growth medium Senara – Senara cell-based milk Cell Agritech – Cell-based meat Forsea Foods – Cell-based fish Onego Bio – Bioalbumen – precision fermented egg protein Sustineri Piscis – Protein mass of cell-based snook fish TissenBioFarm – Whole-cut cell-based beef with marbling The 2023 winners were announced during a special Cell Base webinar this afternoon where shortlisted companies shared their company's mission statements. David Heller from C16 was among the successful companies and expressed his graduate about being shortlisted in this year's award: It's really outstanding that this list even exists and in particular that FoodBev is leading the way and bringing to life these innovations that are going to be so important in the future. Watch the full webinar here We are incredibly excited about this year's World Cell-based Innovation Awards winners and finalists. We can't wait to see which innovative companies continue to push the cell-based food industry forward. Stay tuned! #WorldCellBasedInnovationAwards #FoodBevAwards

FoodBev Media is thrilled to announce the launch of The Cell Base magazine, an exciting new publication that covers all corners of the fast-growing cell-based food arena. Launching this week, The Cell Base is the first B2B magazine dedicated solely to the cell-based food sector, providing readers with unrivalled insights into the area’s current developments, as well as being an essential guide to the future of the segment. The first magazine issue is free and launching in digital format, you can read it here or at the link at the bottom of this article. Subsequent issues will be available in both print and digital via subscription. The publication explores market trends and analysis, offers expert insights and provides exclusive in-depth coverage of the latest movements from the sector. It serves as a hub for critical information, allowing readers to stay up to date with the segment’s latest advancements, trends and innovations. Phoebe Fraser, editor of The Cell Base, commented: " The Cell Base is not just a magazine; it's a catalyst for transformation in the cell-based food industry. We're thrilled to present our first issue, which brings together influential voices and the latest developments in this sector. With each quarterly release, we aim to be at the forefront of change, shaping the future of food production." She continued: “Our vision is to inspire a shift in the paradigm of how we produce and consume food. Cellular agriculture holds the key to addressing some of the most pressing challenges of our time, forging a smarter, more sustainable food system that could mitigate the environmental impact of traditional protein production.” “As a platform, The Cell Base is a meeting place for innovators and thought leaders. We believe that through collaboration, information sharing and in-depth exploration of the latest technologies and trends, we can drive real change in this fast-evolving industry.” A glimpse inside issue one In the inaugural issue of The Cell Base, readers will find a wealth of thought-provoking content, including an in-depth analysis of the industry's current state and where it's headed, an exploration of the latest advancements in 3D bioprinting and a critical look at the evolving attitudes of consumers towards cell-based products. The issue also includes an interview with Upside Foods, whose cultivated chicken is being sold to US consumers, a recap of the recent Future of Protein Production event in Amsterdam and a guest contribution from BioBetter’s CEO Amit Yaari. As the sector continues to evolve, The Cell Base is committed to providing stakeholders with the knowledge, connections and insights they need to thrive in this dynamic landscape. Future issues will discuss topics such as companies harnessing the power of precision fermentation, players working to develop cultivated fat, bioreactor designs and scale-up challenges. The magazine's digital presence extends beyond the quarterly publication. You can engage with The Cell Base through various channels including our website ( thecellbase.com ), social media, newsletters and exclusive events – keep an eye out for webinars hosted by The Cell Base to foster networking and knowledge exchange.

Cell-based seafood company Umami Bioworks has partnered with “Japan’s largest” fishing company, Maruha Nichiro, marking the first time a Japanese seafood company has chosen to invest in a foreign cell-based seafood company. Maruha Nichiro says it has stepped up to ensure a sustainable supply of seafood worldwide, making its first formal investment in cellular agriculture with the aim of laying the foundation for Japan’s cell-based seafood industry. Together, Umami Bioworks and Maruha Nichiro will work to build the infrastructure of Japan’s cell-based seafood industry. The strategic investment from Maruha Nichiro is set to help accelerate Umami’s development progress. The two companies will also carry out a multi-faceted collaboration to accelerate the path to cell-based seafood commercialisation, particularly in novel endangered, threatened and protected species that have global relevance. With the investment, Umami Bioworks will be able to carry out its long-term plan of building a research and commercial team in Japan. In turn, Maruha Nichiro will have a third method of sustainable production, other than fishing and aquaculture, for increasingly scarce seafood species. A spokesperson from Maruha Nichiro said: “As a means to address the anticipated protein supply shortage in the future, Maruha Nichiro highly values Umami Bioworks as a business partner as it is focused on establishing the production technology for cell-cultivated seafood products, while sharing our vision to accelerate the commercialisation of cellular agriculture.” Mihir Pershad, CEO of Umami Bioworks, commented: “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 minimising environmental impact. We have the development and production technology, but we require experienced partners with global reach that can help us manufacture and deliver cultivated products to consumers.” He added: “Through collaborations with industry leaders like Maruha Nichiro, we can leverage our technology expertise to support the co-development of delicious, nutritious, and appealing consumer products that secure a healthier and more sustainable food future for the world.” The companies first announced the investment in Augus t. #UmamiBioworks #Japan #MaruhaNichiro #Singapore

In this interview, editor of The Cell Base Phoebe Fraser is joined by Alex Crisp, writer and host of The Future of Foods, a podcast that digs into the world of cellular agriculture and the transformative changes it brings. This exclusive interview navigates the unchartered waters of cell-based seafood, casting a discerning spotlight on products sourced from sharks and discussing how fin-tastic cellular advancements hold promise not only for our palates but also for industries such as fashion and cosmetics. Join us for part one where we delve deep into the future of sustainable seafood, shelling out the latest insights on how science is taking a bite out of traditional fishing practices. #AlexCrisp #interview

Cellular agriculture investor Agronomics has announced that it has hosted a UK tasting in partnership with its portfolio company Formo Bio. Berlin-based food tech start-up Formo is Europe's “first” cellular agriculture company developing animal-free dairy products using real, nature-identical milk proteins derived from precision fermentation. Investors, partners and members of the press were invited to a tasting experience in which Formo's animal-free cheese and egg products, created through precision fermentation, were included in a menu designed by Chef Allan Pickett. Guests were treated to dishes ranging from egg sliders and quiche to cheese platters and cheesecake, with the dairy products made through precision fermentation. According to Agronomics, Formo's cheeses have the same taste, texture and functional properties as animal-derived cheeses, but come at a “substantially lower cost for the environment, human health and animal welfare”. Formo says that precision fermentation can reduce GHG emissions by over 90%, water consumption by more than 95%, energy consumption by 60% and land usage by 99%. Jim Mellon, co-founder and executive director of Agronomics, said: "We have been fervent supporters of Formo and its technology since the company was founded. In just four years, Formo has made unprecedented progress and is now delivering delicious, animal-free dairy products direct to people's plates." He continued: "This latest event demonstrates how the company is transforming the dairy industry, using its novel technologies to tackle climate change, improve our environment and reduce the suffering of animals without compromising the foods we love to eat". #Formo #Agronomics #UK #Germany