Two companies specialising in lab-grown meat, have received final approval from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to sell their products.
This landmark decision paves the way for the first-ever sales of lab-grown meat in the country, making the United States the second nation, after Singapore, to allow the sale of cultivated meat.
Lab-grown or cultivated meat is produced from a small sample of livestock cells, which are then fed and grown in steel vats.
Both companies initially plan to serve their cultivated chicken at high-end restaurants, eventually scaling up production to make the product more affordable for grocery stores.
Upside Foods announced that its chicken will be available at Bar Crenn, a San Francisco restaurant owned by chef Dominique Crenn. Good Meat, on the other hand, will sell its first batch of chicken to the José Andrés Group, owned by humanitarian and chef José Andrés. The companies are still working out the exact timeline for when their products will be available to consumers.
Cultivated meat companies aim to provide a sustainable and ethical alternative for meat consumers who are concerned about the environmental impact and animal welfare issues associated with traditional livestock production.
