The continuous manufacturing of cultivated meat could address the associated scalability and cost challenges facing the industry, finds a new study published in the Nature journal conducted by Believer Meats founder Professor Yaakov Nahmias and a team at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
The research used a technology called tangential flow filtration, with a new bioreactor assembly that permitted biomass expansion to 130 billion cells per liter. This provided yields of 43% weight per volume. A new animal-free culture medium costing just $0.63 per liter was also used.
The process involved cultivating chicken cells over a 20-day period, with daily biomass harvests. The researchers found that the method could significantly reduce the cost and complexity of cultivated meat production, potentially making cultivated products more accessible to consumers.
“This important study provides numerous data points that demonstrate the economic feasibility of cultivated meat”
The study is claimed to be the first demonstration of the cost-efficient manufacturing of cultivated meat, along with the first empirical economic analysis based on solid data. With the innovative solutions demonstrated, projections indicate that 2.14 million kg of cultivated chicken could be produced annually at cost parity with USDA organic chicken, even in a small 50,000-liter facility. However, the authors acknowledge that other factors could also affect the market price of cultivated meat.
“This important study provides numerous data points that demonstrate the economic feasibility of cultivated meat,” said Dr. Elliot Swartz, Principal Cultivated Meat Scientist at The Good Food Institute. “The study confirms early theoretical calculations that serum-free media can be produced at costs well below $1/L without forfeiting productivity, which is a key factor for cultivated meat achieving cost-competitiveness.”
Making cultivated meat viable
Previously, analyses have raised concerns about the viability of cultivated meat production due to the high costs of facilities and raw materials. However, researchers and companies worldwide are working to develop solutions; for example, scientists at Tufts University have successfully made bovine muscle cells produce their own growth signals, eliminating the need for some costly ingredients.
Several companies are also developing animal-free alternatives to fetal bovine serum, a cell growth medium that is expensive and ethically problematic. Meanwhile, Ever After Foods claims to have developed a cutting-edge bioreactor platform that could provide “unmatched” cost-efficient scalability.
The new study has been published as Believer Meats continues to build what is claimed to be the world’s first large-scale industrial production facility for cultivated chicken.
“We were inspired by how Ford’s automated assembly line revolutionized the car industry 110 years ago,” said Professor Nahmias. “Our findings show that continuous manufacturing enables cultivated meat production at a fraction of current costs, without resorting to genetic modification or mega-factories. This technology brings us closer to making cultivated meat a viable and sustainable alternative to traditional animal farming.”