Will we soon eat cultured laboratory chicken meat in Europe?

German chicken meat manufacturer PHW will collaborate with lab meat start-up SuperMeat to bring lab meat to Europe. Both seek to introduce this new type of meat to Europe and elsewhere quickly.

Goal: to sell cultured chicken together

PHW, one of Europe’s largest poultry manufacturers, has entered a strategic partnership with SuperMeat, a start-up specialized in lab meat without the presence of a single animal. The start-up creates laboratory-based chicken meat from a few cells. According to SuperMeat, a minor chicken biopsy suffices to create (possibly even endless) amounts of chicken meat.

Chicken processor PHW is highly interested, because it feels the meat is also suited to vegetarians and meets an increasing demand for sustainable and “clean” food. PHW will invest in SuperMeat and will support the Israeli company in its R&D efforts and strategic position in the European market. In a press release, SuperMeat co-founder and CEO Ido Savir says he is proud of the collaboration with such a top meat manufacturer like PHW. He also feels the partnership will help to bring lab meat to the European market and beyond.

SuperMeat previously indicated it forecasts it will not take too long before laboratory meat’s prices are comparable to regular chicken meat. The company’s goal is to have people create their own meat at home, because cultured meat’s ecological foot print is much smaller than that of traditional meat: soil down 99 %, water down 90 % and greenhouse emissions down to 96 %.