San Francisco-based company Wildtype has launched its cultivated salmon in US restaurants, marking a significant milestone in the cultivated seafood sector. Beginning this month, the product is being featured at Kann, a Portland, Oregon restaurant owned by James Beard award-winning chef Gregory Gourdet. Initially available on Thursday evenings in June, the cultivated salmon will be offered every day starting in July.First cultivated seafood approved for US marketWildtype’s cultivated salmon is the first cultivated seafood to be cleared for sale in the United States. It joins cultivated meat products from UPSIDE Foods and Eat Just’s GOOD Meat division as the third cultivated protein to enter the US market.Chef Gourdet, known for his Haitian-inspired cuisine, noted that sustainability is a core value at Kann. “At Kann, we take pride in the ingredients we utilize. Introducing Wildtype’s cultivated salmon to our menu hits the elevated and sustainable marks we want our menu to offer guests who share a similar value system to ours,” Gourdet said in a statement.© Wildtype

San Francisco-based Wildtype will be the first company to launch cultivated seafood in the US after securing an FDA ‘no questions’ letter regarding the safety of its cell cultured salmon.Wildtype is the fourth cultivated-protein producer to complete a US pre-market scientific and safety consultation after UPSIDE Foods, GOOD Meat, and Mission Barns, and the third to have full approval to sell (Mission Barns is still awaiting the final go-ahead from the USDA for its cultivated fat).It will debut its wares at the James Beard award-winning Haitian restaurant Kann in Portland, Oregon, on Thursday nights in June, then every day starting in July, before expanding into four additional restaurants.The production processIn the US, cultivated meat and poultry is regulated by the FDA and USDA under a joint regulatory framework. For cultivated seafood, however, the FDA has sole jurisdiction.In a letter to Wildtype dated May 28, the FDA said it had no further questions regarding the startup’s conclusion that its cultivated salmon is “as safe as comparable foods produced by other methods.”According to a scientific memo published by the FDA on the same date, the cells used to establish Wildtype’s cell lines were originally isolated from coho salmon from a Washington state hatchery at the “fry stage” of development, shortly after the fish hatch from the egg.The mesenchymal cells, which are capable of dividing and developing into multiple cell types such as fat, muscle, and connective tissue cells, are adapted to grow in liquid suspension culture without having to attach to a surface.Wildtype does not induce differentiation through changes in its media formulation, which contains Fibroblast Growth Factor 2 (FGF2) but no longer features pricey media components listed in its original regulatory submission such as insulin, insulin-like growth factor (IGF), albumin, and transferrin.“Wildtype’s achievement is a watershed moment for domestic seafood production and for the cultivated protein industry overall. The thoughtful, evidence-driven review proves that innovative food technologies meet the highest safety standards and can play a vital role in healthy American diets, while strengthening our food system’s domestic production and resilience.” Dr. Suzi Gerber, executive Director, AMPSPost-harvest thermal processingThe memo does not explain how Wildtype texturizes or shapes the harvested cells to create products that resemble raw salmon but refers to “post-harvest thermal processing” steps that serve to deactivate/denature any residual growth factors in the product.The total fat content and amino acid content is lower in the harvested cell material versus conventional coho salmon, which Wildtype says is likely due to the absence of protein-rich extracellular structures found in conventional salmon products. Relative levels of minerals were similar, with “modest decreases in the levels of iron, magnesium, potassium, and selenium in the harvested cell material.”Founded in late 2016 by cardiologist Dr. Aryé Elfenbein and Justin Kolbeck, a former diplomat, Wildtype is one of the better-funded players in the nascent cultivated meat/seafood segment, raising more than $123 million to date from backers including L Catterton, Leonardo DiCaprio, Bezos Expeditions, Temasek, S2G Ventures Oceans and Seafood Fund, Robert Downey Jr.’s FootPrint Coalition, and Cargill.More to follow…Further reading:The death of cultivated meat has been greatly exaggerated, says report as Vow predicts it will soon be ‘unit margin positive’Meatable aims to start construction of pilot-scale cultivated meat facility in Singapore later this yearGFI: There are ‘no silver bullets to fill funding gaps in cultivated meat’Inside the UK cultivated meat regulatory sandbox with Mosa Meat, Hoxton Farms, and BlueNalu

TIME Magazine together with Statista, a leading statistics portal, recently unveiled America’s Top GreenTech Companies in 2024, recognizing 250 firms leading the charge in sustainability and environmental stewardship. Among these, FoodTech companies have a notable presence, with a total of 19 making the list, showcasing their pivotal role in advancing green technologies within the food industry. “Time’s feature is an astonishing declaration on the importance of replacing animal-based meat, dairy, and eggs in our food system”