The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspection will allow UPSIDE Foods, a company that produces cell-cultured chicken by extracting cells from living animals and using the cells to grow meat in stainless-steel tanks, to put its products on the market.
According to a joint statement from FDA Commissioner Robert M. Califf and Susan Mayne, director of the FDA’s Centre for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, “the world is experiencing a food revolution and the (FDA) is committed to encouraging innovation in the food supply.”
In documents made public on Wednesday, the FDA stated that it had examined the company’s evidence and had no further concerns regarding the conclusion that its product was safe for humans to consume.
UPSIDE’s head of communications, David Kay, emailed UPSIDE, saying, “We are happy by FDA’s announcement. “This important development clears the way for our journey to the market.”
The FDA stated in a release that although the agency is prepared to collaborate with other businesses making cultured animal cell food, the review does not technically constitute an approval and only relates to UPSIDE goods.
An agreement between the USDA and FDA to regulate cell-cultured beef came into effect in 2019. The processing and labelling of cell-cultured meat products will be under USDA’s supervision.
Along with growing awareness of the high greenhouse gas emissions associated with raising livestock, demand for meat substitutes has increased. Attendees at the COP27 climate conference in Egypt this year were served the raised chicken.
