Shanghai-based CellX a step closer to bringing cultivated meat to market with launch of China’s first pilot plant
- The CellX plant in Shanghai has a 2,000 litre bioreactor with a capacity to produce ‘single-digit tonnes’ of cultivated meat per year, CEO Ziliang Yang says
- The start-up plans to approach food regulators in the US and Singapore to approve their for products sale later this year
Shanghai-based cell-grown meat start-up CellX launched China’s first cultivated meat pilot factory on Wednesday, a significant breakthrough in the nation’s quest for a sustainable source of animal protein to feed its population.
The pilot plant represents a step closer to bringing cultivated meat to dining tables before large-scale production, co-founder and CEO Ziliang Yang said in an interview.
The plant in Shanghai has a 2,000 litre bioreactor with a capacity to produce “single-digit tonnes” of cultivated meat per year, Yang said, with more bioreactors to be added soon.
“The insights from this pilot facility will be used for our commercial production facility that we’re planning to complete by 2025 [which] will be able to produce hundreds of tonnes of products per year,” said Yang.
Ensuring food security for its 1.4 billion people, around a fifth of the world’s population, has become one of China’s top priorities as part of its strategy to cut reliance on imports.