Invest-NL invests in cultivated meat as a sustainable and animal-friendly alternative

Invest-NL is investing € 15 million in Meatable, an innovative Dutch company that grows meat from animal cells. Other investors include the English Agronomics and DSM Ventures.

The Netherlands is a frontrunner in the development of animal-friendly meat

The goal of Meatable is to produce meat with the same taste and texture as conventional meat, but without the negative environmental impacts of traditional livestock farming, such as water consumption, CO2e emissions, land use and animal welfare. Meatable's process starts with taking a small sample of animal cells, which are then grown in a lab into muscle and fat tissue - the two main components of meat. Meatable aims to refine and scale up this process to make cultivated meat commercially viable.

Cultivated meat

Cultivated meat is still in an early stage of development. The costs of cultivated meat are currently still high and production volumes are still low. In addition, the consumption of cultivated meat is not yet permitted, except in Singapore and recently in the United States. In the Netherlands it will soon be allowed to organize tastings. The Netherlands is the first country in Europe where this is possible.

Investors

In addition to Invest-NL, existing investors, including the English Agronomics and DSM Ventures, are also contributing to this investment round in Meatable. The investment will be used to scale up production and thus reduce production costs. The scaling up to commercial volumes can enable a commercial launch in order to offer an affordable alternative to traditional meat in the long term. In Singapore, Meatable will offer its first products from 2024 in selected restaurants and stores.

Bastiaan Gielink, senior investment manager at Invest-NL: "At Invest-NL we are enthusiastic about Meatable's groundbreaking technologies. Cultivated meat has the potential to offer an alternative with an impact on animal welfare, CO2e emission reduction, water use, land use and reduction of antibiotics. An important step in our search for protein alternatives that promote a sustainable and circular society. The innovation that Meatable has established has convinced us that they have the know-how and the team to bring this product to the market."