Meatly has announced today that it has received regulatory clearance to sell cultivated meat for pet food in the UK, making it the first in the world to get authorisation for cell-cultivated pet food.
As a result of this process, Meatly’s cultivated chicken for pet food can now be sold in the UK.
Some companies are turning to human food innovations like cultivated meat to develop sustainable pet food options. Research suggests that the pet food industry has a climate impact similar to that of the Philippines, the 13th most populous country in the world.
Meatly’s cultivated chicken is expected to use up to 64 per cent less land and 28 per cent less water, and its meat contains no antibiotics.
Industrial poultry farming is responsible for vast amounts of pollution. Switching to cell-cultivated meat creates a more sustainable world, safer from pandemics and disease, and more space for nature to grow and recover.
What's cell-cultivated meat?
Cell-cultivated meat is made without animals:
- Meatly took a small sample of cells from a chicken egg, once. After this, according to the company, “we never use another animal product in our production, ever.”
- Like making yoghurt or beer, it nurtures these cells in large containers that control temperature and pH.
- Meatly then provides all the vitamins, minerals, and amino acids the cells need to grow.
Backed by £3.5m in investment, Meatly has achieved regulatory approval in under two years of operation and developed a protein-free media which costs less than £1 a litre, significantly reducing production costs.
Meatly has also secured brand partnerships and production of its products with leading pet food brands.
According to Owen Ensor, Meatly CEO:
“Today marks a significant milestone for the European cultivated meat industry. I’m incredibly proud that Meatly is the first company in Europe to get the green light to sell cultivated meat.
We are proving that there is a safe and low-capital way to bring cultivated meat to market rapidly.
“We’re delighted to have worked proactively alongside the UK’s regulators to showcase that Meatly chicken is safe and healthy for pets.”
Jim Mellon, Founder of Agronomics, an investor in Meatly, added:
“Meatly’s regulatory approval is a landmark event for the industry. Through its technological innovation and close work with governing authorities, Meatly is helping prove that we can succeed in commercialising cultivated products for pets across the UK.”
The public announcement follows a close collaborative process between Meatly and the UK’s regulatory bodies, the Food Standards Agency (FSA), the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA).
Meatly passed APHA’s rigorous inspection process and will continue to adhere to APHA’s ongoing inspection
Beyond the approvals needed, Meatly has proactively prepared a comprehensive safety dossier and conducted extensive testing to demonstrate that its cultivated chicken is safe and healthy for pets.
Testing included demonstrating that their cultivated chicken is free from bacteria and viruses, that the nutrients used to grow the cells are safe, and that the final chicken product is safe, nutritious, and free from GMOs, antibiotics, harmful pathogens, heavy metals, and other impurities.
Linus Pardoe, UK Policy Manager at the Good Food Institute Europe said:
“The UK is a world leader in developing cultivated meat and the approval of a cultivated pet food is an important milestone. It underscores the potential for new innovation to help reduce the negative impacts of intensive animal agriculture.”
Meatly plans to launch the first samples of its commercially available pet food this year, making it the first cultivated pet food sold. Beyond these initial samples, Meatly’s primary focus will remain on cost reduction, and it will start scaling production to reach industrial volumes in the next three years.
Lead image: Meatly. Photo: uncredited.
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