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BIOTEK2021-Bioteknologi for verdiskaping

KSP: ARRIVAL of cellular agriculture- Enabling biotechnology for future food production

Alternative title: ARRIVAL: Moderne teknologi for fremtidens matproduksjon

Awarded: NOK 20.0 mill.

Project Number:

336136

Project Period:

2023 - 2027

Subject Fields:

Global food production is facing enormous challenges in terms of sustainability and food security for a growing population. Global food production must increase by more than 60% by 2050, and as a result, there has been increasing pressure on the livestock sector to meet the growing demand for high-value animal protein. To contribute to this, we will employ Cellular Agriculture (CellAg) as a ground-breaking new, enabling, and fundamentally different technology to produce food proteins. We will produce food proteins, such as milk, egg, and meat proteins using precision fermentation and cultivated meat, using Norwegian raw materials and by-products as input. Furthermore, since CellAg is a revolution in food production that can lead to major changes in agricultural production and ownership, land use, policymaking, food habits, and ethical questions, we aim to enable wider implementation of alternative animal protein sources in food production chains, as well as prepare society, consumers, policymakers and the food industry for the potential impacts of this radical shift in production methods. Through Arrival we lay the foundation will develop enabling biotechnology and knowledge, which will improve and modernize the existing land-based food industry. The novel biotechnological methodology to be developed will in potentially be the foundation of a new kind of Norwegian food industry that will produce tomorrow's food in a smart, sustainable, and innovative way.

Global food production must increase more than 60% towards 2050, and as a result, there has been increasing pressure on the livestock sector to meet the growing demand for high-value animal protein. Although plant-based alternatives have a lot of potentials, these cannot truly mimic animal proteins, recreate the nutritional value, nor the mouthfeel, taste, or functionality. Also, from a circular bioeconomy perspective, increased recycling of waste streams from food production will be necessary. We will employ ground-breaking new, enabling, and fundamentally different technologies to produce food proteins by Cellular Agriculture (CellAg). There are two kinds of CellAg production systems, precision fermentation, and cultured meat, and in ARRIVAL we will use both to produce milk, egg, and meat proteins, homologous to proteins normally produced through conventional agriculture, using Norwegian raw materials and by-products as input. CellAg is a revolution in food production that can lead to major changes in agricultural production and ownership, land use, policymaking, food habits, and ethical questions. In ARRIVAL we aim to enable wider implementation of alternative animal protein sources in food production chains, as well as preparing society, consumers, and the food industry for the potential impacts of this radical shift in production methods. In addition to investigating the technological changes CellAg represents, we will through a transdisciplinary approach explore the foundations that must be laid before Norwegian consumers and society will and can adapt to this technology. Through ARRIVAL we will develop enabling biotechnology and knowledge, which will improve and modernize the existing land-based food industry. The novel biotechnological methodology to be developed will in long term potentially be the foundation of a new kind of Norwegian food industry that will produce tomorrow's food in a smart, sustainable, and innovative way.

Funding scheme:

BIOTEK2021-Bioteknologi for verdiskaping