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Eleven New Cellular Agriculture Research Publications

Here’s the latest research from New Harvest and our grantees.

Published December 20, 2024 | Updated December 20, 2024 | Isha Datar,

It’s been a BIG year for the New Harvest research community.

But before I share a roundup of the publications, I have news: the Canadian Government will be matching every dollar donated to New Harvest between now and the end of the year dollar-for-dollar up to $1.5M.

So yes, that means you can double the impact of your gift if you make a gift of any size. If you’re passionate about advancing cell-ag, now is the time to give.

Gifts like these are what make the foundational research the New Harvest research community publishes possible! Here’s a roundup of the 11 latest publications by New Harvest grantees and staff:
Make cell ag happen. Double your donation here!

Cells

  1. Despite their popularity in diets worldwide, there are no publicly available crustacean cell lines! New Harvest Seed Grantee, Lisa Musgrove, reviewed the benefits and challenges of crustacean cell culture, current knowledge, and potential next steps.

  2. What is the best way to source cells from crustaceans? Lisa Musgrove looked at gene expression in regenerative crayfish limbs to find the best time to source stem cells for cultivated crustacean meat.

  3. Fat is so important for meat’s flavor and taste. New Harvest Fellow Jannis Wollschlaeger grew small spheres of beef fat that can be used to 3D print cultured meat products.

Media

  1. New Harvest Fellow Cameron Semper contributed to a study on the environmental impact of growth factor production. The study looked at novel production systems for four commonly used recombinant growth factors (IGF-1, FGF, TGF-β, and PDGF).

  2. What if cells could produce their own growth factors? New Harvest Fellows Andrew Stout and Sophia Letcher designed cells that produce their own FGF-2, reducing the need to add this costly ingredient to the media.

  3. Recycling media is another idea to reduce costs and increase sustainability. New Harvest Fellow Richard Thyden used algae culture to do just that. Algae consumed the waste produced by cultured meat production, “cleaning up” the media so it could be used again.

Scaffolds

  1. New Harvest Fellow Stephanie Kawecki reviewed edible scaffold options and how to make them. These scaffold materials could help scale up cultured meat while making it more tasty and nutritious!

  2. Incorporating by-products of current food production is one way cultured meat could be more sustainable and cost-efficient. New Harvest Fellow Irfan Tahir incorporated whey protein, a byproduct of dairy processing, into his alginate scaffolds.

Other Topics

  1. Cultured meat is only as good as it tastes and smells! New Harvest Fellow John Yuen used both laboratory instruments and a panel of consumers to compare the smell of his cell-cultivated pork fat to regular pork fat. The two were remarkably similar!

  2. Our Canadian Director of RRI, Yadira Tejeda Saldana, joined collaborators from across the US to develop an example food safety plan for cultivated seafood – a comprehensive plan for identifying and addressing food safety hazards throughout food production.

  3. Alongside a team of artificial intelligence experts, I had the pleasure of exploring the possibilities for artificial intelligence to accelerate innovation in cultured meat, resulting in the most comprehensive review on the topic to date.
About the Authors
Isha Datar