Israel’s Aleph Farms unveils 3D-printed ribeye steak
- The lab-grown meat product ‘incorporates muscle and fat similar to its slaughtered counterpart’, the firm says
- It was cultivated using ‘bio-printing’ and real cow cells that are incubated to grow and acquire the texture and qualities of a real steak
Israel’s Aleph Farms has cultivated a ribeye steak using three-dimensional “bio-printing” and real cow cells – an achievement that is prompting the startup to eye other meat.
Working with the faculty of biomedical engineering at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Aleph Farms made the “world’s first slaughter-free ribeye steak”, the company said in a statement on Tuesday.
The firm’s technology prints living cells that are incubated to grow, differentiate and interact to acquire the texture and qualities of a real steak.
“It incorporates muscle and fat similar to its slaughtered counterpart,” Aleph Farms said, adding that the product boasts the same attributes “of a delicious tender, juicy ribeye steak you’d buy from the butcher”.
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While in its infancy, lab-grown meat could give consumers the taste and nutritional qualities of beef without killing an animal. Surging demand for meat alternatives has boosted sales of plant-based burger patties and sausages.
Aleph Farms said it can now produce any type of steak and plans to expand its portfolio of quality meat products.
The company said last year it was partnering with Mitsubishi Corp. to bring its lab-grown beef to Japan, and in 2019 the firm grew bovine cells on the International Space Station.
