The Bio Future Food Industry Association has launched in South Korea to support and develop the country’s cultivated meat sector.
Established under the Korean biotechnology Industry, the new association boasts participation from 32 members, including the cell ag companies Simple Planet, SeaWith, CellQua, and TissenBioFarm and established food giants like Daesang and CJ CheilJedang.
The Association plans to serve as a communication channel with relevant government agencies, hold regular seminars, build a global network, and promote cooperation programs among member companies. The aim is to enhance the country’s competitiveness in the global cultivated meat market.
Uniting efforts
The inaugural meeting was held at the COEX convention center in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, where Simple Planet’s CEO, Dominic Jeong, was elected as the inaugural chairman.
Jeong holds a Ph.D. in Chemical and Biological Engineering from Seoul National University and interned at Harvard Medical School. A serial entrepreneur, he founded Simple Planet in 2021 to produce cultivated meat ingredients. To date, he has raised $7.5 million for the company’s growth and expansion.
Jeong said at the inauguration, “The Association has been launched to unite the efforts of bio future food companies, promote mutual cooperation, and devise countermeasures to enhance global competitiveness in response to the rapidly growing global cultured meat market.”
Building the cultivated meat industry
South Korea has made a significant leap toward commercializing cultivated meat by designating a special regulatory-free zone to accelerate the production of cell culture food products.
The zone, officially named the Gyeongbuk Cell-Cultivated Foods Regulatory-Free Special Zone (RFSZ), aims to address the legal obstacles facing product development, establish standards for these novel foods, and develop a skilled workforce for the cultivated meat industry. With a budget of ₩19.9 billion ($14.4 million), the RFSZ will be operational for the next five years (until 2028).
Additionally, South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has been evaluating the safety and manufacturing processes of cultivated meat and is already accepting applications for its approval. This decision by the Ministry follows the temporary implementation of regulations for cultivated products, which shows the government’s interest in the new technology.
In other government efforts, Simple Planet was chosen to participate in a national project to develop cultivated meat and seafood this May. This initiative is supported by the Korea Institute of Planning and Evaluation for Technology in Food, Agriculture, and Forestry, the Korea Agriculture Technology Promotion Agency, and the Korea Institute of Marine Science & Technology Promotion, with a combined funding of ₩11 billion.
Jeong added “Today’s meeting will be an important starting point for researching, developing, and industrializing sustainable future foods. We will build the foundation for the bio-future food industry, engage in continuous discussions with regulatory agencies, and seek policy improvements to revitalize the industry.”
