The Good Food Institute APAC (GFI APAC), the Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization (KoreaBIO), and the Bio-based Future Food Industry Committee (BFFIC) have joined forces to accelerate novel proteins in South Korea.
The partnership was formalized in a memorandum of understanding (MOU) ceremony in Seoul, attended by GFI Founder and President Bruce Friedrich, KoreaBIO Vice President Seung-kyou Lee, and BFFIC President Dominic Jeong.
“Reimagining how meat is made is one of humanity’s greatest untapped opportunities”
As part of the MOU, the organizations will work to boost market research, technical knowledge exchange, and policy coordination for novel food regulatory frameworks. Additionally, they will collaborate on educational initiatives such as global webinars, workshops, and presentations on cultivated meat and other novel proteins. The MOU will also foster stronger connections between South Korean and overseas industry stakeholders and facilitate international expansion for Korean companies involved in novel foods.
Bruce Friedrich shared, “Reimagining how meat is made is one of humanity’s greatest untapped opportunities. As a world-class innovation hub, South Korea’s expansive R&D and manufacturing ecosystem will play a crucial role in supercharging cultivated meat development and pioneering the technological breakthroughs our planet urgently needs.”
A cultivated meat product expected by 2025
The try-party initiative has launched ahead of South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety’s first regulatory review of cultivated meat, expected to be completed by 2025. In the announcement, GFI APAC implies that the cultivated meat product reviewed is from the company Simple Meat.
Besides boosting innovations, the collaboration underscores the necessity of global cooperation to accelerate novel foods, which are viewed as critical to future food supply systems and aims to facilitate the expansion of novel foods in the country.
Singapore’s Umami Bioworks, has expanded to South Korea aiming to establish a cultivated seafood facility, and the Canadian cell ag company CULT Food Science is working with the Korean cell-based pet food startup Everything But to launch cultivated chicken pet food products in the USA. Cultivated X received news today from a European biomass fermentation company that has hit regulatory roadblocks in its home country and found a welcoming market in South Korea instead.
Global cooperation for the future of food
In recent years, South Korea’s government has implemented various policy actions to support cellular agriculture innovations. The launch of the North Gyeongsang Cellular Agriculture Industry Support Center and the creation of a regulatory-free zone for startups to fast-track cultivated meat prototypes without the burden of regulations are among the notable initiatives. In addition, the ministry has been evaluating cultivated meat’s safety and manufacturing processes and is accepting applications for its approval.
In this positive scenario, BFFIC was launched earlier this year, bringing together 32 members to provide additional support and develop the country’s cultivated meat sector. Cultivated meat companies Simple Planet, SeaWith, CellQua, and TissenBioFarm, along with food giants Daesang and CJ CheilJedang, are among the participants. Simple Planet’s CEO, Dominic Jeong, is the organization’s inaugural chairman.
Meanwhile, KoreaBIO aims to strengthen connections within the bioindustry, support the growth of related companies by promoting technological advancement and industrialization, and contribute to the national economy.
Dominic Jeong commented, “Global mutual cooperation is essential for the industrialization of novel foods, including alternative proteins, which will be crucial for the future food supply system.”
Seung-kyou Lee shared, “The association hopes that this agreement will create a domestic industrial ecosystem in line with global trends and enable many Korean companies involved in novel food to successfully expand their business globally.”
