Consumers in Singapore will soon be able to eat pork dumpings and the like made by mixing cell-based meat with plant-based proteins, when a new innovation centre opens in the city state in the 2nd half of 2023.
Said to be the world’s first hybrid meat innovation centre, it is a result of a partnership between Dutch cultivated pork company Meatable and local plant-based butcher Love Handle.
The new US$6 million innovation centre will have a kitchen and lab fitted with high-tech equipment suitable to make hybrid meat and plant-based products. These include industrial blenders, mixers, emulsification equipment and tools to analyse food texture. It will also act as a showroom for customers to try out the fusion meats.
“Hybrid meat refers to a newer type of alternative protein where plant-based meat, animal cells and even fermented edible microbes or algae are mixed to form a fusion protein product. This takes the optimal properties of each alternative to enhance the final hybrid product’s taste, texture and nutrition,” said Ken Kuguru, Love Handle Co-Founder and CEO.
Ken said that plant-based meat sometimes lack the meaty texture or the nutritional profile as found in traditional meat, and this can be overcome with cell-based meat, which however by itself will be too expensive. A fusion of both will get the best of both worlds in terms of appearance, texture, taste, and price.
By 2024, Meatable and Love Handle aim to produce hybrid meat items such as pork belly, meatballs, cold cuts and patties on the menus of local restaurants. By 2025, they hope to sell the products at supermarket shelves.
Meatable is also currently in advanced negotiation with Singapore Food Agency to get regulatory approval for its cell-cultured pork.
