Upside Foods Gains FDA Approval for Cultivated Chicken

In November 2022, the news that clean meat supporters have been waiting for dropped: Upside Foods made history, becoming the first company to receive the green light from the FDA for its cultivated chicken. The move came as the FDA had no questions in response to Upside’s assertion that cultivated chicken is safe for human consumption. 

In a press release published on November 16, 2022, Upside Foods revealed that it had become the first company to receive a “no questions” response during the premarket consultation phase from the FDA for cultivated chicken. 

What is Upside Foods?

Dr. Uma Valeti, the founder and CEO of Upside Foods, explained that he launched the company amid an industry of skeptics. Upside has now made history as the first company in the world to receive FDA approval for cultivated meat. This move marks an early but still major milestone in the transition towards a new era in meat production. Dr. Valeti said he was excited by prospect of presenting US consumers with the opportunity to eat delicious meat grown without animals.

The FDA released its memo to the press alongside a 104-page document prepared by Upside Foods. The supplement from the company provides detailed information regarding the production process for its cultivated chicken filet and evidence regarding its safety. The announcement marks a move closer to the reality of “no kill” meat being available for sale to the US public.

What is cultivated meat? 

Also known as clean meat and cultured meat, cultivated meat is authentic animal protein that’s produced by direct cultivation of animal cells rather than from a formerly living animal. The method can be used to cultivate meats and various types of seafood, eventually decreasing the need to raise and slaughter animals for food. Consisting of the same cells arranged in a similar structure to slaughtered animal tissues, cultivated meat can replicates both the nutritional and sensory profiles of conventional meat, its supporters argue.

As described in Clean Meat, the first cultivated meat burger was unveiled on live television in 2013 by Mark Post, a Dutch scientist. Within the next few years, four cultivated meat startups were established. The industry has since grown to comprise more than 60 companies operating on six continents and backed by more than $450 million in investments. Each organization aims to produce its own range of cultivated meat products tailored for local markets, with scores more companies launched to develop technology solutions needed across the value chain.

How is cultured meat manufactured?

Producing cultivated meat relies on decades of accumulated knowledge in tissue engineering, stem cell biology, cell culture, fermentation, and chemical and bioprocess engineering. Across the world today, hundreds of academic laboratories and private companies are investing in the discipline with the aim of establishing a new generation of meat product manufacturing at an industrial scale.

The manufacturing process involves acquiring and banking cells from an animal. These cells are grown in bioreactors at high volumes and densities. Cells are fed with an oxygen-rich cell culture medium containing basic nutrients such as proteins, vitamins, glucose, and amino acids. The process of creating cultivated meat takes from 2 to 8 weeks, depending on the type of meat being cultivated.

What is the premarket consultation phase?

In an email to TechCrunch, the FDA confirmed that this was the only cultivated meat product for which it had completed an evaluation. The government agency did point out that the premarket consultation was not an approval of the final product. Rather, it is an indication that the FDA did agree with Upside’s safety conclusion regarding its production. More is still needed before Upside can begin marketing its products to the public.

The announcement marks a historic milestone for cultivated meat companies seeking to develop and scale their product lines. Progress in the sector has been slower than some investors and entrepreneurs might like. Singapore made history as the first country to approve the sale of cultured meat, with Eat Just establishing itself as the first, and still only, company to sell its cultivated chicken in the country.

When will cultivated meat be ready for the market?

Meanwhile in California, Upside Foods will be able to start selling its products once representatives from the US Department Agriculture have inspected its facilities. Speaking on behalf of the FDA in a joint statement, Susan T. Mayne and Dr. Robert M. Califf explained that advancements in cell culture technology had enabled food developers to use animal cells in the production of food, confirming that these products are expected to be ready for the US market in the not-so-distant future.

In their joint statement, Mayne and Dr. Califf highlighted that the FDA’s goal was to support innovation in food technologies while placing priority on maintaining the safety of foods available to US consumers. Meanwhile, Upside CEO Uma Valeti tweeted that the company’s cultivated chicken was a “step closer to being on tables everywhere.”