Revolution on the Plate: How GOOD Meat is Reshaping the Future of Food
First company in the world to sell cultivated chicken!
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In this article we will examine GOOD Meat, the cultured meat division of food technology company Eat Just. GOOD Meat is cultivated, sustainable and safe meat from animal cells instead of slaughtered animals. Eat Just also created one of America’s fastest-growing egg brands, which is made entirely of plants - JUST Egg.
Advocates of cultured meat claim that lab-grown meat will offers an innovative solution to sustainably nourishing a growing population with nutrient-dense food, preserving biodiversity, and substantially reducing carbon emissions associated with traditional livestock farming.
Despite its promise, the cultured meat market must surmount a number of substantial obstacles before achieving broad acceptance. The foremost challenge is scaling up production, as creating bioreactors for cell growth can be both expensive and energy-intensive. Additionally, earning consumer trust depends on delivering a product that matches the taste, texture, and nutritional value of traditional meat. Moreover, the industry must develop effective marketing strategies to counter critics who label lab-grown meats as "Frankenfoods" and argue they contradict the trend towards less processed, more natural foods.
This article will explore the strategies GOOD Food employs to address the hurdles faced by the cultured meat industry.
GOOD Meat is safer for the families, better for the planet and better for our future!
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1. About Good Meat, a subsidiary of Eat Just
GOOD Meat is a food technology company with a mission to build a healthier, safer and more sustainable food system in our lifetimes. GOOD Meat was heralded as one of 2020's top scientific breakthroughs by The Guardian, Vox and WIRED.
The company is headquartered in Alameda, California with a growing team based in Singapore where company is currently in-market.
GOOD Meat made history in December 2020 when it became the first company in the world to gain regulatory approval for its cultivated chicken product in Singapore. Consequently, GOOD Meat served its cell-based chicken meat to customers at the restaurant 1880 in Singapore, marking the first-ever commercial sale of cultivated meat.
2. Committed Team
Josh Tetrick is the co-founder and CEO of Eat Just. Tetrick has been leading the company since its inception, driving its vision for a more sustainable and ethical food system. His background includes work in social entrepreneurship, education, and non-profit sectors. The other founder of Eat Just is Josh Balk, an advocate for animal welfare and environmental sustainability. Andrew Noyes is the Head of Global Communications at Eat Just.
“Our cultured chicken contains a high protein content, diversified amino acid composition, high relative content in healthy monounsaturated fats, and is a rich source of minerals” - Andrew Noyes
3. Competitive Advantages
There are several companies working on cultivating cell-based chicken, like Memphis Meats, SuperMeat, Future Meat Technologies, Avant Meats, Higher Steaks etc. It is important to note that the competitive landscape of the cell-based meat industry is constantly evolving. However, there are some specific aspects where GOOD Meat has made significant progress:
3.1 Regulatory Approval
GOOD Meat won regulatory approvals from Singapore Food Agency (SFA) to market cultured chicken in November 2020 and December 2021. It remains the only cultivated meat producer in the world with the ability to sell to consumers.
This accomplishment put the company ahead of many competitors in terms of bringing their products to market and showcasing the safety and quality of their cell-based meat.
Recently, they also received a ‘no questions’ letter from the FDA, which means FDA has affirmed that the company’s cultivated chicken is safe to eat, bringing the company closer to commercialization in the U.S.. The “no questions” letter by FDA stated that, “Based on the safety assessment GOOD Meat has conducted, it is our understanding that GOOD Meat has concluded that foods comprised of or containing the cultured cellular material resulting from the production process defined in CCC 000001 are as safe as comparable foods produced by other methods and would not contain substances that adulterate the food.”
The first company to have passed the FDA pre-market consultation process for cultivated meat was Upside Foods, which is backed by Bill Gates, and valued at more than $1 billion. Upside Foods is waiting for USDA approval as well.
GOOD Meat also awaits the approval of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) before it can begin to commercially offer its cultivated chicken at US foodservice and retail locations. USDA is responsible for safeguarding meats that are grown in the US.
3.2 Influential Advisory Board
Good Meat said in its announcement that it is actively working with the USDA to secure the necessary go-aheads. Company’s CEO said once the USDA gives the greenlight, “We’re going to start with internationally acclaimed chef José Andrés’ restaurants, and then enter channels similar to what we’ve done in Singapore.” José Andrés is a member of GOOD Meat’s board of directors and chef and owner of ThinkFoodGroup, which operates more than 30 restaurants nationwide. Andrés brings decades of food industry expertise and being a humanitarian advocate he brings a well-developed social conscience.
“The future of the world depends on how we feed ourselves, as the great food thinker Brillat-Savarin wrote almost 200 years ago. We need to innovate to adapt our food to a planet in crisis. We need to create meals that feed the people at the same time as we sustain our communities and environment. I’m proud to join the GOOD Meat team in that mission, as a board member and as a cook,” said Andrés.
This year, GOOD Meat has further strengthened its advisory board by welcoming two esteemed food and agriculture leaders. In September, former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman, renowned for his expertise in agriculture, nutrition, hunger, bipartisan politics, and public policy, joined the company's Advisory Board. Additionally, Jim Borel, former Executive Vice President of DuPont, became a member of GOOD Meat's Board of Directors. These additions exemplify the company's commitment to leveraging industry expertise to propel its mission forward.
3.3 Consumer Reach
GOOD Meat's regulatory approval allowed them to serve the world's first cell-based chicken meat at the restaurant 1880 in Singapore, demonstrating their product's taste and texture to actual consumers. This first-of-its-kind event enhanced their brand recognition and helped familiarize the public with cultured meat.
In 2022, Good Meat partnered with family-owned Huber’s Butchery, one of Singapore’s premier producers and suppliers of high-quality meat products to sell and serve cultivated meat. Huber’s Butchery bistro is selling Good Meat cultivated chicken salad with cilantro lime dressing, at around SG$18.5, about US$14.
GOOD Meat has focused on perfecting the taste and texture of their products, targeting familiar meat products like chicken nuggets and chicken bites. By creating products that consumers are already familiar with, they increase the likelihood of consumer acceptance and adoption.
Since launch, the company has started selling its chicken nuggets and breasts across local fine dining restaurants and street food vendors in Singapore and via foodpanda, Asia's leading food and grocery delivery platform.
By focusing on efficient production, regulatory approvals, and familiar product offerings, they are working to make cell-based meat a viable and attractive option for consumers worldwide.
3.4 Partnerships and investments
GOOD Meat, through its parent company Eat Just, has secured significant investments and partnerships, including a partnership with the sovereign wealth fund of the Government of Singapore to build and operate a plant-based protein production facility. This facility helps scale up the production of GOOD Meat's cultured meat, leading to cost reductions through economies of scale.
They have also reduced the cost of cell culture medium by shifting from using expensive, animal-derived components like fetal bovine serum (FBS) to more cost-effective, plant-based alternatives. This support allows the company to scale up production and expand its market reach more quickly than some competitors.
Additionally, in 2022, GOOD Meat signed a seven-year deal with bioprocess equipment specialist ABEC to design, manufacture, install and commission a 6,000-liter bioreactor, which will be the largest known bioreactors for producing avian and mammalian cell-based meat. The plant, which will be running the company’s serum-free formulation process, is slated to open in later 2023.
3.5 Commitment to cost reduction
Company has made efforts to reduce the cost of cell culture media, a major expense in cell-based meat production, by shifting from animal-derived components like fetal bovine serum (FBS) to more cost-effective, plant-based alternatives.
Good Meat has plans to drive their serum-free media cost further down from the current $1 per liter to “tens of cents,” according to Tetrick, allowing the company to produce “hundreds of thousands of pounds” of cultivated meat. Company’s next phase plan is to install vessels north of 100,000 liter each, which will enable then to cultivate tens of millions of pounds of chicken. This new facility will help to keep up with future demand. It is estimated that about 40-plus million pounds will be required to achieve national distribution across the US.
3.6 Diversification
Apart from cell-based chicken, Eat Just, the parent company of GOOD Meat, also produces plant-based egg products under the brand JUST Egg. This diversification into different protein sources helps to position the company as a leader in the broader alternative protein market.
4. Financials
GOOD Meat has raised a total of $267M in funding over 2 rounds. Their latest funding was raised on Sep 20, 2021 from a Venture - Series Unknown round. GOOD Meat is funded by 5 investors: K3 Ventures, Resilience Reserve, Fernando Chico Pardo, Founder and President of Promecap, Graphene Ventures and UBS O'Connor.
5. Concluding Remarks
“Most consumers are already onboard because they understand the benefits of this production method. Cultured meat is not for 2050, it is a very concrete solution to tackle today’s environmental and sanitary challenges.” - Morin-Forest, CEO and Co-founder of Gourmey
GOOD Meat is making notable strides by successfully navigating regulatory processes in Singapore and the US, introducing their product to the Singapore market, and earning customer acceptance. The company is diligently working to optimize production costs, enhance output, and refine cell density for an authentic chicken texture. By partnering with prominent individuals and leveraging social media platforms strategically, GOOD Meat effectively shares their story, empowering consumers to make informed and sustainable choices.
Taste Test Review of an AFN reporter, who went at the GOOD Meat’s launch in Singapore: “an impressive, tasty product that could become a like-for-like replacement for chicken nuggets, burgers, and so on – should the production costs come down”.
GOOD Meat has successfully satisfied discerning taste buds, positioning itself as a promising contender in the cultivated, sustainable, and safe meat market derived from animal cells rather than slaughtered animals. If the company can effectively reduce prices, it will pave the way for a revolutionary shift in meat consumption. In conclusion, GOOD Meat is poised to redefine the future of food, where indulging in delicious, ethical, and eco-friendly meat becomes the new norm.