Regulators, including the Animal and Plant Health Agency and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, have approved Meatly’s cultivated chicken product for pets.
Environmental impact of meat
There is growing interest in lab-grown pet food among animal lovers concerned about the environmental impact of traditional meat.
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The climate footprint of the pet food industry is comparable to that of the Philippines. A study at the University of Winchester revealed that half of pet owners would feed their pets lab-grown meat, and nearly a third would consider consuming it themselves.
Meatly’s cultured chicken is made by taking a small sample from a chicken egg and cultivating it with nutrients in a lab environment. This process results in a paté-like paste.
Samples are available this year
The company’s facility has been officially approved and Meatly plans to launch the first commercially available pet food samples this year. Future goals include reducing costs and scaling production to industrial levels within three years, possibly by mixing meat with vegetables.
Meatly has so far raised £3.5 million from investors and aims to raise a further £5 million. The UK Food Standards Agency is assessing the first applications for cultured meat intended for human consumption.
Meanwhile, countries like Singapore and Israel have already approved lab-grown meat for human consumption, though some US states have banned it.
Would you feed your pet lab-grown meat?