Project Grant 20243353041930

CULTIVATED MEAT OFFERS A MORE SUSTAINABLE AND EFFICIENT ALTERNATIVE TO TRADITIONAL AGRICULTURE BY ADDRESSING NATIONAL FOOD SECURITY, REDUCING GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS AND OPTIMIZING LAND AND WATER UTILIZATION. FACED WITH THESE BENEFITS, OVER 80% OF CONSUMERS HAVE SHOWN INTEREST IN TRYING IT. HOWEVER, EXISTING ALTERNATIVE PROTEIN PRODUCTS FACE TASTE, PROCESSING AND TEXTURE ISSUES, FAILING TO CAPTURE CONSUMERS. CULTIVATED MEAT TECHNOLOGY IS STILL NASCENT AND FACES MANY BIOPROCESS-RELATED CHALLENGES TO ACHIEVE A SCALED AND RESOURCE EFFICIENT PRODUCTION OF MEAT. CURRENT APPROACHES ARE LIMITED BY LOW YIELDS, CORRELATING WITH A HIGH COST OF PRODUCTION AT ~$150/LB OF CULTIVATED MEAT. IN ORDER FOR ALTERNATIVE PROTEINS TO REALIZE THESE BENEFITS AND CAPTURE A PORTION OF CONVENTIONAL MEAT AND SEAFOOD, IT NEEDS TO A) DELIVER A HIGH-QUALITY PRODUCT THAT MATCHES CONSUMER EXPECTATIONS AND B) BE MANUFACTURED IN A SCALABLE WAY TO MEET VOLUME AND COST REQUIREMENTS.REEL'S PLATFORM TARGETS THESE KEY BOTTLENECKS WITH TWO KEY INNOVATIONS.PROPRIETARY PLATFORM ENABLES THICK, CELLULARLY DENSE WHOLE-CUT PRODUCTS: REEL'S PROPRIETARY SYSTEM AIMS TO ADDRESS A CRITICAL TECHNICAL HURDLE IN TISSUE ENGINEERING--SPECIFICALLY, THE CHALLENGE OF MAINTAINING HIGH CELL VIABILITY IN THICK TISSUES DUE TO LIMITED OXYGEN DIFFUSION. THE SYSTEM IS CAPABLE OF MAINTAINING HIGH CELL VIABILITY IN THICK, CELLULARLY DENSE TISSUES, THUS ENABLING A NATURAL, WHOLE-CUT PRODUCT WITH CELL-DRIVEN TEXTURE. THIS METHOD IS MUCH MORE SCALABLE, REDUCING STRUCTURING TIME BY OVER 2 ORDERS OF MAGNITUDE COMPARED TO EXISTING METHODS LIKE LAYER-BY-LAYER PRINTING.METHODTO ENABLE SCALABLE, COST-EFFICIENT BIOMASS PRODUCTION: REEL'SPRODUCTION METHOD SUPPORTS THE CULTUREOF ADHERENT MUSCLE STEM CELLS. THIS SCALABLE 3D CELL CULTURE METHOD DRIVES HIGHER YIELDS AND ENABLES COST-EFFICIENT BIOMASS PRODUCTION, WITH THE POTENTIAL TO REDUCE CAPITAL EXPENDITURE SIGNIFICANTLY FOR AN EQUIVALENT AMOUNT OF CULTIVATED MEAT VS. EXISTING METHODS. IN THE SHORT TERM, THESE INNOVATIONS WILL BE APPLIED TO CULTIVATED MEAT TO REALIZE THE POTENTIAL OF CULTIVATED MEAT AS A MORE SUSTAINABLE AND SECURE FOOD PRODUCTION SYSTEM. IT HAS THE POTENTIAL TO LOWER GHG EMISSIONS BY 55-92% IN BEEF AND 17% IN CHICKEN, AND ITS EFFICIENT FEED USE LOWERS THE DEMAND FOR FEED CROPS AND DECREASES LAND USE. IT ALSO ADDRESSES CRITICAL HEALTH CONCERNS, PROVIDING A CLEAN ALTERNATIVE FREE FROM MERCURY, MICROPLASTICS AND PCBS IN SEAFOOD AND LOWERING THE RISK OF ZOONOTIC DISEASES AND ANTIBIOTICS USE DUE TO ELIMINATION OF CLOSE ANIMAL CONFINEMENT IN OTHER PROTEINS.