Lab-grown meat ‘not market ready for five years’: Bell CEO

Lab-grown meat will not be ready for the market for at least five years, according to Bell CEO Keystone-SDA

A phase of strong growth in meat substitute products is over, according to the CEO of Swiss food producer Bell Food Group.

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Sales of Bell’s meat substitute range are only growing by 0-1% per year, Marco Tschanz said in an interview with the Neue Zürcher Zeitung newspaper.

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Although there was a boom during the coronavirus pandemic, this has tailed off. Meat substitutes have therefore “remained a niche product until now”.

One reason for this is the flavour, which is still not comparable to that of meat. In addition, these are often “highly processed products with many additives”, said Tschanz. In terms of price, the substitute products, which were often more expensive in the past, have now equalised with the original.

Bell also continues to rely on conventional meat. Per capita consumption in Switzerland has been stable for many years, explained Tschanz. At the same time, the population is growing and Bell is gaining market share.

Consumption of chicken meat in particular has recently increased significantly.

Meat from the lab

In the long term, however, Bell also attaches importance to laboratory grown meat. In 2018, the company acquired a stake in the Dutch start-up Mosa Meat, which produces meat in a laboratory.

“If a technology emerges to produce the raw material meat without slaughtering and cutting up an animal, then we have to be part of it,” said Tschanz. Thanks to its involvement, Bell is “close to research and development” and has “backed the right horse”.

However, it will be some time before such a product reaches the mass market. The authorisation process is “very complex and highly regulated”, said Tschanz. In the EU, the test procedures take two to three years, after which politicians have to decide. “So it will take at least another five years.”

Initially, lab meat will probably be offered in restaurants, where it can be specially labelled, and not in supermarkets. According to Tschanz, it will not replace conventional products, but rather complement them.

The global demand for meat is increasing and “can no longer be met in the traditional way”.

Adapted from German by DeepL/mga

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