Cellular ag technologies address two of the initiative’s four focal areas of innovation for 2022; they could be a key tool for reducing food’s environmental impact and enabling greater food security.
Aleph Farms, the Israeli cultivated meat
startup on a mission to replace
cows
as an alternative to environmentally intensive cattle farming, today announced
that it has joined the Agriculture Innovation Mission for
Climate (AIM for Climate) as an Innovation
Sprint Partner. As part of this innovation sprint, $40 million is being
invested in cellular agriculture R&D over the next five years through Aleph
Farms with the support of growth investor L Catterton; Israeli food
manufacturing giant Strauss Group; food-focused venture capital firms
VisVires New Protein, CPT Capital and Synthesis Capital; nonprofit
food think tank Food Tank; and advisory firm Christensen Global.
The United States and the United Arab Emirates, alongside 39 other
countries and over 180 non-governmental partners, officially launched the AIM
for Climate initiative at
COP26
in Glasgow in 2021. The initiative galvanizes support and investments for
innovation geared towards climate-smart agriculture and food systems, with a
goal of fostering and scaling solutions where global hunger and the climate
crisis intersect. AIM for Climate has four focal areas for innovation sprints in
2022:
Of the four, cellular ag addresses the latter two: As a
supplement
to sustainable methods of animal agriculture and the emerging powerhouse of
alternative
proteins,
cellular ag has the potential to rapidly reduce emissions of methane — a
powerful (yet short-lived) greenhouse gas (GHG) of which
livestock
is a main source. Compared to conventional beef production, cultivated meat
produced via cellular agriculture can reduce GHG emissions by 92 percent and
water use by 78 percent, according to an independent life cycle
analysis
conducted by CE Delft. Cultivated meat is also far more efficient than cows
at converting feed into meat. By requiring 95 percent less land, cultivated meat
opens up new opportunities for land use, including producing more food and
rewilding habitats for
biodiversity
— the latter of which further reduces emissions. In addition, because cultivated
meat is produced in closed systems, its production is feasible in locations
where extreme climate and resource scarcity prevent conventional beef production
from taking place.
“Enhancing food security via cellular agriculture empowers communities and
fosters regional cooperation, spurring economic growth in the process. This is
why we are especially proud to be allocating these R&D funds as an AIM for
Climate Innovation Sprint Partner,” said Didier Toubia, co-founder and CEO
of Aleph Farms. “With cellular agriculture, humanity is better equipped to
overcome significant food-related challenges and bring agricultural systems back
into balance.”
Because meat represents only one-third of a cow slaughtered for conventional
beef, Aleph Farms intends to continue expanding its product line to replace the
whole cow. The company — which in 2021 became the
first
to have grown steaks directly from non-genetically engineered animal cells — has
also developed slaughter-free
collagen,
which has numerous applications across an array of multibillion-dollar
industries. Aleph Farms will introduce its products into global markets as soon
as regulatory processes conclude and approvals are finalized.
Published Aug 30, 2022 8am EDT / 5am PDT / 1pm BST / 2pm CEST
Sustainable Brands Staff