What companies make lab-grown meat?

The leading cultivated meat companies in 2026 are: Upside Foods (cultivated chicken, FDA/USDA approved, Berkeley CA), GOOD Meat by Eat Just (cultivated chicken, approved in US and Singapore), Aleph Farms (cultivated beef steaks, approved in Israel), Mosa Meat (cultivated beef, EU pending, Netherlands), SuperMeat (cultivated chicken, Israel), and Believer Meats (cultivated chicken/lamb, building largest facility in North Carolina). Other notable companies include Wildtype (cultivated salmon), Finless Foods (cultivated seafood), and New Age Eats (cultivated pork).

Can you buy lab-grown meat?

As of March 2026, cultivated meat is available in very limited quantities in the United States and Singapore. In the US, Upside Foods and GOOD Meat received both FDA GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) designation and USDA grant of inspection in 2023, allowing them to sell cultivated chicken at select restaurants. In Singapore, GOOD Meat has been selling cultivated chicken since 2020. Israel granted regulatory approval to Aleph Farms in 2024. However, cultivated meat is not yet widely available in grocery stores or most restaurants. Scale-up of production facilities is the key bottleneck.

How much does lab-grown meat cost?

Production costs for cultivated meat have fallen dramatically but remain above conventional meat. The first lab-grown burger (2013) cost $330,000. By 2024, production costs had fallen to approximately $10-30 per pound for cultivated chicken, depending on the company and production scale. Industry projections suggest costs could reach $5-8 per pound by 2028-2030 at commercial scale, approaching price parity with premium conventional chicken. The main cost drivers are cell culture media (nutrients that feed the cells), bioreactor capital expenditure, and energy. Reducing media costs from $50+/liter to $1-2/liter is the single largest lever.

Is lab-grown meat safe?

Cultivated meat has passed rigorous safety evaluations by multiple regulatory agencies. The FDA conducted pre-market safety consultations for both Upside Foods and GOOD Meat, evaluating the cell lines, production processes, and final products. The USDA inspects cultivated meat production facilities using the same standards as conventional meat processing plants. Singapore's Food Agency conducted independent safety assessments before approving GOOD Meat in 2020. The core process -- growing animal cells in a controlled, sterile environment -- eliminates many food safety risks of conventional meat, including antibiotic-resistant bacteria, fecal contamination, and zoonotic disease transmission.

How is lab-grown meat made?

Cultivated meat production follows four steps: (1) Cell sourcing -- cells are taken from a living animal via a small biopsy (a one-time, harmless procedure) or from established cell banks. (2) Cell proliferation -- cells are placed in bioreactors (similar to beer brewing tanks) filled with a nutrient-rich growth medium containing amino acids, vitamins, sugars, and growth factors. The cells multiply, doubling every 24-48 hours. (3) Differentiation -- cells are directed to mature into muscle, fat, or connective tissue. (4) Harvesting and processing -- the resulting tissue is harvested from bioreactors and formed into final products (nuggets, patties, or whole-cut steaks via scaffolding/3D printing).

Is lab-grown meat better for the environment?

Life cycle analyses suggest cultivated meat could reduce land use by 95%, water use by 78%, and greenhouse gas emissions by 70-90% compared to conventional beef production. However, these projections depend heavily on the energy source used to power bioreactors. If powered by renewable energy, cultivated meat has a significantly lower carbon footprint than conventional meat. If powered by fossil fuels, the benefit is smaller. Cultivated meat eliminates the need for raising and slaughtering billions of animals, the leading cause of deforestation, biodiversity loss, and antibiotic resistance. The environmental case is strongest for replacing beef, which has the highest environmental footprint per calorie.

Lab-Grown Meat Companies: The Complete Guide to Cultivated Protein (2026)

Cultivated meat -- real animal protein grown from cells, without slaughter -- has moved from science fiction to regulatory reality. Two companies (Upside Foods and GOOD Meat) have received both FDA and USDA approval in the United States. Israel has granted its first approvals. The EU is evaluating Novel Food applications. This guide profiles every major cultivated meat company, their technology, regulatory status, production costs, and path to commercial scale. Combined funding across the sector exceeds $1.6B.

Companies Profiled

Combined Funding

$1.6B+

FDA/USDA Approved

Countries with Approvals

CULTIVATED MEAT COMPANIES // Overview6 companies

Company	HQ	Founded	Funding	Product	Regulatory Status	Stage
Upside Foods	Berkeley, CA	2015	$608M	Cultivated chicken	FDA GRAS + USDA grant of inspection (2023)	Limited commercial (US)
GOOD Meat (Eat Just)	San Francisco, CA	2011	$467M	Cultivated chicken	FDA GRAS + USDA (2023); Singapore Food Agency (2020)	Limited commercial (US, Singapore)
Aleph Farms	Rehovot, Israel	2017	$250M+	Cultivated beef steaks	Israel regulatory approval (2024); Switzerland pending; US pending	Pre-commercial (regulatory clearance in Israel)
Mosa Meat	Maastricht, Netherlands	2016	$115M+	Cultivated beef	EU Novel Food application pending; Singapore pending	Pre-commercial (pilot production)
SuperMeat	Tel Aviv, Israel	2015	$25M+	Cultivated chicken	Israel regulatory approval pending; US pending	Pre-commercial (pilot facility)
Believer Meats	Rehovot, Israel (US HQ: Wilson, NC)	2019	$175M+	Cultivated chicken, lamb	US FDA/USDA in process	Pre-commercial (largest facility under construction)

COMPANY PROFILES // Deep Dive

Upside Foods$608M

Berkeley, CA | Founded 2015 | Cultivated chicken

Technology: Animal cell culture in proprietary bioreactors; serum-free media; scaffolding for whole-cut products

Regulatory: FDA GRAS + USDA grant of inspection (2023)

First company to receive both FDA and USDA approval for cultivated meat in the US. Initial sales at select restaurants. Scaling to EPIC production facility in Illinois.

GOOD Meat (Eat Just)$467M

San Francisco, CA | Founded 2011 | Cultivated chicken

Technology: Suspension-based animal cell culture; 250,000L bioreactor capacity planned; partnership with ABEC for reactor design

Regulatory: FDA GRAS + USDA (2023); Singapore Food Agency (2020)

First company globally to sell cultivated meat (Singapore, 2020). Building large-scale production facility. JBS partnership for global distribution.

Aleph Farms$250M+

Rehovot, Israel | Founded 2017 | Cultivated beef steaks

Technology: Proprietary 3D bio-printing for structured whole-cut steaks; non-GMO cell lines; animal-free growth media

Regulatory: Israel regulatory approval (2024); Switzerland pending; US pending

First company to produce cultivated beef steak (not ground). Focus on whole-cut products that replicate the texture and structure of conventional steak. BioFarm production facility operational in Israel.

Mosa Meat$115M+

Maastricht, Netherlands | Founded 2016 | Cultivated beef

Technology: Bovine cell culture; serum-free media (developed proprietary FBS-free process); suspension bioreactors

Regulatory: EU Novel Food application pending; Singapore pending

Founded by Mark Post, who created the first lab-grown burger in 2013 ($330,000 per patty). Costs have fallen dramatically. Building pilot production facility in the Netherlands.

SuperMeat$25M+

Tel Aviv, Israel | Founded 2015 | Cultivated chicken

Technology: Chicken cell culture; continuous production process (vs batch); compact bioreactor design for restaurant-scale

Regulatory: Israel regulatory approval pending; US pending

Operates "The Chicken" test restaurant in Tel Aviv. Focus on B2B supply to restaurants and food service rather than retail. Unique continuous-production approach.

Believer Meats$175M+

Rehovot, Israel (US HQ: Wilson, NC) | Founded 2019 | Cultivated chicken, lamb

Technology: Spontaneously immortalized cell lines (no genetic modification); large-scale bioreactor design; animal-free media

Regulatory: US FDA/USDA in process

Formerly Future Meat Technologies. Building the world's largest cultivated meat production facility in Wilson, NC (capacity: 10,000+ metric tons/year). Non-GMO approach may simplify regulatory path.

PRODUCTION COST TRAJECTORY

Year	Cost per Pound	Milestone	Context
2013	$1.2M	First lab-grown burger (Mark Post / Mosa Meat)	Proof of concept only
2019	$500-1,000	Early startup prototypes	Small-scale bioreactors, FBS media
2022	$50-100	Pilot plant production	Serum-free media, optimized cell lines
2024	$10-30	Early commercial production	FDA/USDA approvals enable limited sales
2026 (est.)	$7-15	Scale-up phase	Larger bioreactors, cheaper media
2028-2030 (target)	$5-8	Price parity target	Commercial-scale facilities operational

THE BOTTOM LINE

Cultivated meat in 2026 is past the question of "can it be done" and squarely at "can it be done at scale and at a price consumers will pay." The technology works. The regulatory path is clear in the US, Singapore, and Israel. The remaining challenge is manufacturing economics: reducing cell culture media costs by 10-50x, building bioreactor capacity at the 100,000+ liter scale, and achieving production costs below $10/pound.

The competitive landscape is splitting into two tiers. Tier 1 (Upside Foods, GOOD Meat, Believer Meats) has regulatory clearance or massive production facilities under construction. Tier 2 (Aleph Farms, Mosa Meat, SuperMeat) has strong technology but faces regulatory or scale-up bottlenecks. The winners will be companies that solve the media cost problem and build production capacity fastest.

For the broader cultivated protein market to reach mainstream adoption, production costs must fall to $5-8/pound (achievable by 2028-2030 at scale), taste must match conventional meat (most companies report near-parity in blind taste tests), and consumer acceptance must overcome the "ick factor" (surveys show 40-60% of consumers are willing to try cultivated meat). The sector is real, the products are real, and the question is now purely one of industrial scaling.

Frequently Asked Questions// Lab-grown meat companies

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