Thumbnail Image

Cell-based food: its safety and its future role

Stakeholder roundtable meeting report, Tel Aviv, Israel, 7 September 2022

Year of publication 2023

Place of publication Rome, Italy ;

Pages 42 p.

Author FAO

Publisher FAO ;

Product type Booklet

Synopsis (short abstract) Cell-based food production involves culturing cells isolated from animals to develop products such as meat, poultry, aquatic products, dairy and eggs. Currently, many companies around the world are developing a wide range of cell-based foods using a variety of different production methods. In collaboration with the Ministry of Health, Israel, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) held a stakeholder meeting to come up with a technical reference document on the food safety aspects of cell-based food. Developers and producers of cell-based foods were invited to present the different cell-based production processes used for chicken nuggets, hamburgers, beef steak and sushi salmon, and to present their input materials, such as scaffolds, cell lines and growth media, that in certain cases are consumed along with the cell-based food product. All the participants stated that food safety is of foremost importance, and many presenters explained their cell-based food production processes with relevant food safety considerations in flowcharts, which have been included in this report. The meeting provided an opportunity for stakeholders from different parts of the world to learn from one another, and to share their experiences and challenges. As a result, the presentations delivered in the meeting provided an overview of the 2022 status of the topic of cell-based food development and presented the potential complexities of conducting food safety hazard identifications for cell-based food.

Cite this content as:

FAO. 2023. Cell-based food: its safety and its future role – Stakeholder roundtable meeting report, Tel Aviv, Israel, 7 September 2022. Rome.

https://doi.org/10.4060/cc6967en

Language English

Also available in:
No results found.

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

  • Thumbnail Image
    Booklet
    Cell-based food and precision fermentation – Products, safety and the future role
    Stakeholder roundtable meeting report, Shanghai, China, 6 November 2023
    2024
    Also available in:
    No results found.
    As the global demand for proteins and specific nutrients grows, many people are looking into opportunities to expand the scope of diverse and sustainable sources of such nutrients. Food safety is one of the prominent key issues to ascertain before such products go into the market, and various competent authorities are working to identify and address potential food safety issues and their implications. After the first stakeholder meeting on cell-based food organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in collaboration with the Government of Israel, many experts suggested that FAO maintain such dialogues to regularly update the knowledge of this fast-improving technology. This led to the stakeholder meeting organized by FAO jointly with the Government of China in November 2023, which considered precision fermentation besides cell-based food. The present report summarized the results of the meeting attended by a total of 55 participants in Shanghai, China on 6 November 2023. The meeting provided a snapshot of the state of development of these particular technologies and the industry in 2023. As an increasing number of countries are reviewing the regulatory applications, valid examples of how to assess product safety have become available. All participants recognized that open discussions between stakeholders and regulators are key when it comes to clarifying important aspects of food safety, and that supporting the relevant scientific innovations is vital for achieving the overall food security goals and sustainable food production for the future.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Book (stand-alone)
    Food safety aspects of cell-based food 2023
    Also available in:
    No results found.
    Cell-based food production, which is the field of growing animal agricultural products directly from cell cultures, has been explored as an alleged sustainable alternative to the conventional livestock agricultural system. As commercial cell-based food production continues to expand, the urgency increases to address one of the most important questions of consumers, the question of food safety. Thus, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), has developed the present document to engage with respective Members and relevant stakeholders by proactively sharing the current knowledge to identify concrete ways to inform consumers and all other stakeholders about the food safety considerations for cell-based food products. This document includes a literature synthesis of relevant terminology issues, principles of cell-based food production processes and the global landscape of regulatory frameworks for cell-based food production. Case studies from Israel, Qatar and Singapore have been included to highlight different scopes, structures and contexts surrounding their regulatory frameworks for cell-based food. The results of the FAO-led Expert Consultation, where comprehensive food safety hazard identification was conducted, form the core of the document and the identified hazards are summarized with causal-chain examples. The way forward will consist of continuing to invest in research and development in order to understand whether the alleged benefits in increased sustainability can be realized. In this regard, it will be important to closely observe as to what extent, if any, cell-based foods result in differences from conventionally produced foods.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Brochure, flyer, fact-sheet
    Nine things to know about food safety aspects of cell-based food 2023
    Also available in:
    In April 2023, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) launched a milestone publication “Food safety aspects of cell-based food”. Here are nine things for those working in government in the area of food safety to know about cell-based foods.
Show more

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

No results found.