What is cultivated meat?

Cultivated meat is meat produced directly from cells. The process of cultivating meat uses the basic elements needed to build muscle and fat and enables the same biological process that happens inside an animal. Cultivated meat is identical to conventional meat at the cellular level.

Where does cultivated meat fit in the alt protein landscape?

Compared to the other pillars of alternative protein production – plant-based and fermentation – cultivated meat is a more recent innovation. 

However, the idea of cultivating meat without the animal has a long history. In 1931, Winston Churchill predicted, “We shall escape the absurdity of growing a whole chicken in order to eat the breast or wing, by growing these parts separately under a suitable medium.”

Professor Mark Post and his team at Maastricht University debuted the first cultivated burger in August 2013. In 2016, the first cultivated meat company, UPSIDE Foods, launched publicly. Mosa Meat and Super Meat soon followed. GOOD Meat sold the first cultivated meat product in 2020, debuting chicken nuggets at a restaurant in Singapore. By the end of 2024, four cultivated meat products were cleared for sale across the United States, Singapore, and Israel. 

Why is cultivated meat important?

Using animals to convert plants to meat is incredibly inefficient. According to the World Resources Institute, it takes nine calories of food fed to a chicken to get one calorie back out in the form of animal flesh, and chickens are the most efficient at converting crops to meat. Livestock provides just 18 percent of calories consumed by humans but takes up 77 percent of global farmland.

Cultivating meat directly is estimated to be nearly three times as efficient as chicken production. This efficiency translates to cultivated meat requiring 64 to 90 percent less land, and causing 20 to 94 percent less air pollution and 75 to 99 percent less marine eutrophication when compared to conventional chicken and beef production, respectively. Cultivated meat produced using renewable energy could reduce the carbon footprint of beef by up to 92 percent. Cultivating meat also avoids the risk of fecal contamination and does not require many animals to live in close confinement. This, in turn, will drastically reduce the need for antibiotics in meat production as well as the risk of zoonotic pandemics.

What needs to be done to advance cultivated meat?

Although there are dozens of cultivated meat companies around the world, none have yet reached large-scale or cost-competitive production. From cell line development to bioprocess design, there are a number of challenges to meet before cultivated meat is widely available and cost-competitive.

This is why the Good Food Institute created our Research Grants Program – to drive cutting-edge open-access research around the world. It is also why we are calling for governments to shift some of their billions of agricultural research funds to cultivated meat and other alternative proteins.

Around the world, we are working with government agencies to craft clear regulatory oversight of cultivated meat that puts food safety first. For example, GFI consulted with Singapore’s government leading up to their approval and the first commercially cultivated meat sale. GFI in the U.S. and around the world is working to ensure cultivated meat companies can compete on a level playing field with full public trust.

Cultivated meat nomenclature

We recommend “cultivated meat” continue to be used as the central industry term for meat produced via animal cell culture.

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Research supports the term “cultivated meat”

Research conducted in December 2022 validates the use of “cultivated meat” over “cell-cultured meat” and other terms. Learn more in our fact sheet.

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Cultivated meat: A growing nomenclature consensus

GFI Founder and CEO Bruce Friedrich explores the increased sector alignment around the preferred category name for meat produced through cellular agriculture.

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Meat cultivation: Embracing the science of nature

We developed a set of science-forward, evidence-based communication tools, rooted in familiar language, to help explain meat cultivation to non-technical audiences.

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Linked Survey finds European consumers want freedom to choose cultivated meat

Surveys in 15 European countries find people believe food safety regulators should have the final say, despite moves to ban it in countries like Italy. 

The cultivated meat industry

Since the first three CM companies publicly launched in the U.S., the Netherlands, and Israel in 2016, the industry has grown tremendously. There are now at least 174 cultivated meat companies around the world, with over three billion dollars raised in early funding rounds. There are now business-to-business companies specializing in serving cultivated meat producers.

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Virtual Event

The State of the Industry: Cultivated meat and seafood

Join GFI for a webinar series covering the current global landscape of alternative proteins. This webinar will provide a global analysis of the nascent cultivated meat industry.

A dish featuring cultivated chicken, pasta, and asparagus.  photo courtesy of good meat.

Cultivated meat industry summary

Our fact sheet provides a mid-year update on the current cultivated meat commercial landscape, investments, technical progress, and policy updates.

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Cultivated meat consumer trends in the United States

Explore the latest insights on U.S. cultivated meat trends and uncover consumer awareness, motivations, barriers, and demographics in our concise fact sheet.

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Discover cultivated meat research projects

Due to the gap in foundational research for alternative protein science, we work with a select group of generous donors to run a grant program for open-access research.

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Multi-omic profiling for cultivated seafood

This project will leverage multi-omic data to analyze several fish species in depth.
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Model-guided optimization of alt protein

This project will develop and optimize low-cost serum-free culture media for cultivated chicken meat, using metabolic modeling and spent media analysis.
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Fish culture microcarrier nutrient delivery

This project will develop novel edible and bioactive microcarriers for scalable, efficient, and reproducible cultivated fish production. These microcarriers will allow in vitro cultivation of fish embryonic stem cells and controlled delivery of essential molecules for cell growth.
Rainbow representations of protein structures for a cultured meat concept

Lowering the cost of growth factors

Learn about Dr. Peter Stogios’ research engineering improved and lower-cost growth factors for cultivated meat at University of Toronto.

A battered and fried cultured meat, a cultured chicken cutlet, plated with sauteed greens and mashed root vegetables | image courtesy of upside foods

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The science of cultivated meat

Learn about the science of cultivated meat and the challenges that must be addressed for commercial production.

Getting governmental approval

Before cultivated meat comes to market in a country, a regulatory pathway must be in place. In many places, cultivated meat will be approved product by product. As of 2024, four cultivated meat products were cleared for sale across the United States, Singapore, and Israel. Additional meat products are under regulatory review in at least nine countries or regions, including the European Union, the United States, Singapore, Israel, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and South Korea. Each of these countries has established robust regulatory pathways for cultivated meat, while others around the world are still in development.

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Ensuring a clear path to market

Cultivated meat must have an efficient regulatory path to market to be successful. Learn how GFI advocates clear and efficient regulations.

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The State of Global Policy on Alternative Proteins

Our annual State of Global Policy Report tracks public investment in alternative proteins and showcases the actions governments took to position themselves as leaders in the field.

Making the case

GFI contributes to the regulatory process through expert comments and litigation. Through letters to the FDA and state legislators and governors as well as through participation in lawsuits, GFI helps level the playing field for cultivated meat.

Machinery in a cultivated meat food production facility

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Addressing challenges of cultivated meat

Cultivated meat offers a sustainable option for genuine animal meat, but addressing key challenges through research is essential for its success.

Cultivated chicken cut on a salad from above

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Cultivated meat media kit

Cultivated meat stands to transform our global food system. Learn the basics and dig into the latest updates on this game-changing protein alternative.

Cultivated poke dish by ivy farm 2023, cc-by ivy farm

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Cultivated meat image library submission form

Contribute delicious images of cultivated meat to our library. Your licensed CC-BY photos of cultivated meat help generate accurate, appealing press coverage.

Expert perspectives

The cultivated meat field moves fast. We help keeps readers up-to-date through regular posts from our experts around the world.

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Let’s do this: How core values can fuel progress in 2025 and beyond

Our commitment to protein innovation keeps growing stronger, thanks to deep-rooted values and a global network driving change.

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Three themes that capture our 2024

Going beyond the headlines to the people, places, and spaces advancing alternative proteins.

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Building the next generation of alternative protein innovators

We are excited to introduce our 2024 Research Grant Program outcomes, continuing our support for groundbreaking research in alternative proteins.

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The reality of securing investment to scale alternative proteins

The funding environment for alternative protein companies has shifted dramatically–but paths forward are emerging.

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Support our work

Our research and insights are made possible thanks to our generous, global family of donors. Philanthropic support is vital to our mission. Connect with us today to discuss how you can help fuel this transformative work.

Header photo courtesy of JUST