UK regulators approve Meatly’s cultivated meat for pet food

UK – Meatly, a British lab-grown meat company, has announced that it has become the first European company to be authorized to sell cultivated meat, following UK clearance for its cultivated pet food. 

“We’re delighted to have worked proactively alongside the UK’s regulators to showcase that Meatly chicken is safe and healthy for pets. We can now continue our mission to give consumers an easy choice – ensuring we can feed our beloved pets the real meat they need and crave in a way that is kinder to our planet and other animals,” Owen Ensor, Meatly’s CEO, commented. 

Jim Mellon, Founder of Agronomics and an investor in Meatly, pointed out that through its technological innovation and close work with governing authorities, Meatly is proving that it can successfully commercialize cultivated products for pets across the UK. 

“Our pets consume huge amounts of meat daily, so this development can play a crucial part in reducing the emissions, resource consumption, and animal suffering caused by traditional meat production, ” he commented.

The firm plans to launch the first commercially available pet food samples this year, making it the first cultivated pet food sold. 

Beyond these initial samples, Meatly’s primary focus will remain on cost reduction. In the next three years, it will start scaling production to reach industrial volumes.

The public announcement follows a close collaborative process between Meatly and the UK’s regulatory bodies, the Food Standards Agency (FSA), the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA). 

The relevant UK Government departments have ensured that Meatly complies with all necessary regulations, and Meatly has now passed APHA’s rigorous inspection process. 

DEFRA and APHA have now approved Meatly’s production facility to produce and handle their cultivated chicken. 

Comprehensive safety dossier prepared 

Additionally, Meatly points out that it has proactively prepared a comprehensive safety dossier and conducted extensive testing to demonstrate that its cultivated chicken is safe and healthy for pets. 

Testing included demonstrating that Meatly’s cultivated chicken is free from bacteria and viruses, that the nutrients used to grow the cells are safe, and that the final chicken product is safe, nutritious, and free from GMOs, antibiotics, harmful pathogens, heavy metals, and other impurities.

Regulatory approval follows several significant milestones that have placed Meatly at the forefront of the cultivated meat industry, leading a new wave of cultivated meat start-ups that are proving there is a low-capital and fast route to market. 

Backed by £3.5 (US$4.50) million in investment, Meatly pointed out it has achieved regulatory approval in under two years of operation and developed a protein-free media that costs less than £1 (US$1.29) a liter, significantly reducing production costs. 

The firm has also secured brand partnerships and production of its products with leading pet food brands.

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