Lab-grown food could be sold in UK within two years

In the United Kingdom, there is exciting news about food that is grown in laboratories. It is possible that within the next two years, people will be able to buy lab-grown meat, dairy, and sugar for the first time. This timeline is quicker than many experts had anticipated. The Food Standards Agency, known as the FSA, is currently exploring ways to accelerate the approval process for these innovative lab-grown foods. These products are created from cells in small chemical plants, and while UK companies have been at the forefront of this scientific advancement, they feel that existing regulations are hindering their progress. In 2020, Singapore became the first country to allow the sale of cell-cultivated meat for human consumption, followed by the United States three years later and Israel last year. However, some regions, including Italy and certain states in the US, have imposed bans on these products. The FSA is committed to developing new regulations by collaborating with experts from high-tech food companies and academic researchers. Their goal is to complete a comprehensive safety assessment of two lab-grown foods within the two-year timeframe they are initiating. Critics, however, express concerns that involving the companies in drafting the new regulations may lead to a conflict of interest. This initiative is a response to worries from UK firms that they are falling behind competitors in other countries, where the approval processes are significantly faster. Professor Robin May, the chief scientist at the FSA, assured BBC News that consumer safety will not be compromised. He stated, 'We are working very closely with the companies involved and academic groups to work together to design a regulatory structure that is good for them, but at all costs ensures the safety of these products remains as high as it possibly can. ' Nevertheless, critics like Pat Thomas, director of the campaign group Beyond GM, are skeptical of this approach. She remarked, 'The companies involved in helping the FSA to draw up these regulations are the ones most likely to benefit from deregulation, and if this were any other type of food product, we would be outraged by it. ' The cells used to create these foods are cultivated in fermentation tanks and then processed to resemble traditional food items. The science minister, Lord Vallance, disagrees with the characterization of this process as 'deregulation. ' He explained, 'It is not deregulation; it is pro-innovation regulation. ' He emphasized the importance of aligning regulations with the needs of innovation while reducing unnecessary bureaucracy and duplication. Lab-grown foods are developed from tiny cells that can originate from either plant or animal tissue. This process may involve gene editing to enhance the properties of the food. The claimed advantages of these foods include being more environmentally friendly and potentially healthier for consumers. The government is eager for lab-grown food companies to succeed, as they believe it can lead to job creation and economic growth. The UK excels in scientific research, but the current approval process is much slower compared to other countries. Companies in Singapore, the US, and Israel, in particular, have more efficient procedures. Ivy Farm Technologies, based in Oxford, is prepared to launch lab-grown steaks made from cells taken from Wagyu and Aberdeen Angus cows. The company applied for approval to sell its steaks to restaurants at the beginning of last year. Dr. Harsh Amin, the CEO of Ivy Farm, expressed that waiting two years is an excessively long time. He stated, 'If we can shorten that to less than a year, while maintaining the very highest of Britain's food safety standards, that would help start-up companies like ours to thrive. ' Dr. Alicia Graham, who works at Imperial College London's Bezos Centre, has developed a method to grow an alternative to sugar. This involves introducing a gene found in a berry into yeast, allowing her to produce large quantities of sweet-tasting crystals. She claims that it does not contribute to weight gain and could serve as a healthy sweetener in fizzy drinks. In a personal tasting, she described the product as incredibly sweet with a slightly sour and fruity flavor, reminiscent of lemon sherbet. However, Dr. Graham's company, MadeSweetly, is also unable to sell the product until it receives approval. She noted, 'The path to getting approval is not straightforward. They are all new technologies, which are not easy for the regulator to keep up with. But that means that we don't have one specific route to product approval, and that is what we would like. ' The FSA has committed to completing a full safety assessment of two lab-grown foods within the next two years and aims to establish a more efficient and effective system for approving new lab-grown foods. Professor May of the FSA emphasized that collaborating with experts from the involved companies and academic institutions is crucial to ensure the science is accurate. He stated, 'It can be quite complex, and it is critical that we understand the science to make sure the foods are safe before authorising them. ' However, Ms. Thomas cautioned that these high-tech foods may not be as environmentally friendly as they are portrayed, as their production requires energy, and in some cases, their health benefits may be overstated. She remarked, 'Lab-grown foods are ultimately ultra-processed foods, and we are in an era where we are trying to get people to eat fewer ultra-processed foods because they have health implications.