Singapore Becomes First Country To Approve Lab-Grown Meat, SFO Start-up Eat Just To Supply Cell-cultured Chicken To Restaurants

Singapore has granted San Francisco start-up Eat Just regulatory approval to sell its laboratory-grown chicken in the city-state -- the world's first government to allow the sale of cultured meat, CNN reported.

Singapore Food Agency (SFA), Singapore’s regulatory authority entrusted with ensuring a safe food supply, granted the approval after an iterative and extensive safety review process.

The cell-cultured chicken will be produced under Eat Just’s new GOOD Meat brand through partnerships with local manufacturers. The lab meat will go on sale to restaurants before it is available to consumers.

Eat Just already produces a range of non-animal products, including Just Egg, made with mung beans, and a vegan mayonnaise.

Eat Just’s cultured chicken was confirmed to be safe and nutritious for human consumption by a distinguished outside panel of international scientific authorities in Singapore and the United States, with expertise in medicine, toxicology, allergenicity, cell biology and food safety.

The company said it went through 20 production runs of cell-cultured chicken in 1,200-liter bioreactors to prove the consistency of its manufacturing process. It also said antibiotics were used in the manufacturing process.

According to the company, the cultured chicken contains a high protein content, diversified amino acid composition, high relative content in healthy monounsaturated fats and is a rich source of minerals.

“Singapore has long been a leader in innovation of all kinds, from information technology to biologics to now leading the world in building a healthier, safer food system. I'm sure that our regulatory approval for cultured meat will be the first of many in Singapore and in countries around the globe. Working in partnership with the broader agriculture sector and forward-thinking policymakers, companies like ours can help meet the increased demand for animal protein as our population climbs to 9.7 billion by 2050," said Josh Tetrick, co-founder and CEO of Eat Just.

Also Read: Generating Meat In Labs: The Technology, Opportunities And The Consequences