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Food-tech start-up TissenBioFarm has announced a major breakthrough for the cell-based F&B category: the production of cultivated meat with cell density equivalent to that of conventional meat.

The company, based in South Korea, claims it has also succeeded in producing cultivated meat with cell density exceeding that of conventional meat, a milestone achievement for the industry.

In a statement announcing the breakthrough, TissenBioFarm said this development marks a shift for cultivated meat away from ‘discussions of theoretical possibility’ toward a phase defined by ‘technically realised, measurable outcomes’.

Due to various hurdles surrounding scaling up, regulatory complexities, production challenges and cost, the cultivated meat industry has seen slower-than-expected technological progress in contrast with the optimism surrounding the category’s initial introduction.

Analysts acknowledge a fundamental distinction between what is considered technically possible and what has been realised, with the accomplishment of achieving cell densities comparable to ‘real’ meat having posed a particular challenge since the industry’s inception.

This has led to perceptions that cell-based meat more closely resembles a scaffold-based structure than true meat tissue, TissenBioFarm noted.

The start-up has approached the issue by focusing on tissue rather than individual cells. Biologically, meat is not a simple aggregation of cells, but a form of tissue – TissenBioFarm said the same principle therefore applies to cultivated meat.

The company stated that when cultivated meat is approached as edible artificial tissue, the technological boundaries it can reach can be redefined. Its latest achievement, it says, is the result of this approach – not a theoretical projection or estimate, but a technically realised outcome demonstrated for the first time.

According to TissenBioFarm, controlling initial cell density conditions enables the production of cultivated meat with cell density equivalent to that of real ribeye steak, as well as cultivated meat containing more than twice the cell density found in real meat.

As a result, the company noted that analysts are projecting an evolving discussion – shifting from the number of cells in cultivated meat, toward what new value cultivated meat with higher cell density than real meat could deliver to end consumers and the industry.

The achievement could unlock new opportunities in cultivated meat technology, with TissenBioFarm aiming to continue further validation and technological advancement centred on tissue engineering.