Founded last year by Pluri Inc., a pioneer in 3D cell-based technology, Ever After Foods has announced the launch of its patented bioreactor platform for cultivated meat. With backing from the largest Israeli food producer, the Tnuva Group, the company has developed the first production platform for bringing cultivated meat to the mass market.
“In less than a year, Ever After Foods developed a solution unlike any other in the market through massive technological advancements that evolved the original biotech-focused technology into a food-grade platform. We see incredible potential for Ever After Foods to transform cells into high-quality cultivated meat products,” said Yaky Yanay, Pluri CEO and President, as well as Chairman of Ever After Foods.
Ever After Foods' proprietary scalable bioreactor system overcomes the critical scaling challenge faced by industry players for cultivated meat production. In comparison to other cultivated meat technology platforms, its manufacturing plants will require substantially lower capital expenditures and lower production costs – leading to a 700 percent increase in productivity.
“Current cultivated meat companies all use very similar methods for growing cells and face insurmountable challenges when it comes to scaling production in a cost-effective manner. To achieve cost parity, their methods will demand huge bioreactors of more than 10,000-liters, which are infeasible for use with animal cells. Ever After Foods’ disruptive technology enables significantly higher cultivated meat production capacity, with efficiencies that lower resources and costs. We can currently produce more than 10 kilograms of cultivated meat mass with just a 35-liter bioreactor and have a proven path to scale and reach price parity,” said Ever After Foods CEO Eyal Rosenthal.
Using cell-based technology, Ever After Foods produces cultivated meat products that have uncompromised taste and texture. By using its cell-based technology, the company produces meat that contains fat and muscle cells, as well as proteins found in the extracellular matrix (ECM).
The United Nations predicts that the population of the world will rise to 9.7 billion by 2050, and meat demand will far exceed what our planet's natural resources can sustain. Cultivated meat offers a way forward; animal-friendly, it provides people with more nutrients and protein whilst significantly decreasing environmental damage from greenhouse gas emissions, as well as shrinkage in agricultural land and water usage. Over the next 20 years, an estimated 60 percent of all global meat products will be alternative meats, whereas cultivated meat is anticipated to increase at a faster rate than plant-based alternatives. As yet, cultivated meat is not available on sale or for consumption in the US, but due to recent advances with the FDA combined with early markets like Singapore, the sector must now amplify manufacturing efforts in preparation for when it goes global.