Aleph Farms, the first cultivated meat company to grow steaks directly from non-genetically engineered animal cells and WACKER, a supplier of leading protein production technologies, announced the development of streamlined production processes for essential growth medium proteins to cost-effectively grow cultivated meat. These proteins, central to promoting and supporting cell growth, are not widely available in the market and represent one of the most prohibitive expenses in scaling up cultivated meat. The agreement between WACKER
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And Aleph Farms is non-exclusive, meaning any cultivated meat company will be able to obtain these same affordable proteins, without using fetal bovine serum (FBS) or animal-derived ingredients. This open supply chain solution is expected to enable the industry to scale and achieve price-parity faster, eliminating a key hurdle in the commercial viability of cultivated meat.
Bringing down the cost and making suitable raw materials available at this key moment in the scale-up of production is imperative to taking cultivated meat mainstream and driving impact”, said Didier Toubia, Co-Founder and CEO of Aleph Farms. “Investing in the development of a supply chain solution available to the entire industry is a direct result of our innovative and inclusive business model and the impetus behind our partnership with WACKER.”
WACKER brings over 20 years of experience in protein production to the partnership, as well as a deep understanding of the food industry’s requirements and regulations. At its corporate research labs in Munich, WACKER is working on fermentation techniques for producing cell culture proteins for use in food applications, which will have the same composition of proteins produced inside the animal’s body. Similar production techniques are widely used today to produce enzymes for food processing applications.
“The market for cultivated meat is advancing rapidly and we want to contribute to making it an affordable reality for everyone,” said Susanne Leonhartsberger, president of WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS, WACKER´s life science division.