Why is lab meat so dear? Rules in the UK and EU make prices high. Firms must pay £350,000–£500,000 for each type of meat to meet safety rules, and getting the green light can take 2.5 years or more. In that time, firms face more costs like making their sites better, paying for legal help, and checks. These costs get passed to us, the buyers.
Main Points:
- High start costs: Making sure each meat type is safe can cost up to £500,000.
- Long wait times: It takes 2.5 years to get a yes in the UK; in the EU, it might take 5 years.
- Site needs: Fancy gear and clean rooms add to what it takes to make the meat.
- Higher prices: All these costs make lab meat cost much more than old-school meat.
To cut costs and make lab meat cheaper, ways include using the same rules everywhere, making the yes-or-no process faster, and helping folks trust lab meat. If these things don't change, hard rules will keep making it tough for us to buy and pay for lab meat.
Rules to Follow in the UK and EU
What Does Following Rules Mean?
In the world of made meat, following rules means sticking to set laws and safety ways told by leaders before these goods can be sold to people. It's not just about checking things off a list; firms must show that their goods are safe and match the usual meat standards.
In both the UK and the EU, made meat is seen as a "new food" because it was not much eaten before 15 May 1997. This tag starts a tough okay process made to keep buyers safe while giving firms a clear way to take new food goods to market.
This way is key to make sure food safety, make buyer trust, and prove that the goods are good to sell. Without this okay, firms can't legally sell their made meat goods.
"Safe innovation is at the heart of this programme. By prioritising consumer safety and making sure new foods, like cell-cultivated products are safe, we can support growth in innovative sectors. Our aim is to ultimately provide consumers with a wider choice of new food, while maintaining the highest safety standards." - Prof Robin May, chief scientific advisor at the FSA [3]
Once safety rules are set, firms need to take a detailed path to get approval.
Main Steps for Making Cultivated Meat
To sell cultivated meat, firms need to stick to clear rules. In the UK, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) handles it. In the EU, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Commission take lead.
The first part is to turn in a full file. This paper tells about how the product is made, what's in it, and how it will be used. Then, a deep check for risks - done by the FSA in the UK and EFSA in the EU - is needed to see if it's safe for people to eat.
A big win came in August 2024 in the UK. They said yes to using grown chicken cells in pet food. Made from chicken egg bits and raised in tanks like those in beer making, this was the first such meat approved in Europe for this use [2].
Problems with Changing Rules
The changing rules bring tough times for both makers and rule-makers, putting this new type of meat in mostly new space.
A big block is the long time it takes to get a yes. In the UK, it's about 2.5 years, in the EU, it's from 2.5 to 5 years depending on the case's size and if they need more info.
Also, the list of things needed in your file can change based on where you are. This makes it cost more for firms trying to get a yes in many places. These shifts can really change when you finish and how much you spend.
Politics play a role too. For example, some EU states might say no to new food for political reasons. This makes things risky for firms that have put a lot into the approval steps.
To fight these blocks, the UK has started a "sandbox" plan. It lets firms work close with rule-makers to clear up what's needed before they hand in their official forms. The aim is to dodge delays and cut down on nos.
"In essence, the regulatory sandbox is already making an impact on attracting innovative companies like ours to the UK market." - Maarten Bosch, Mosa Meat CEO [6]
These blocks show we need new ways to make rules easy and cut costs for firms coming into this new market.
How Rules Make Lab-Grown Meat Cost More
Rules don't just make it hard to move lab-grown meat from the lab to your plate - they also make it cost more. Each step in getting approval and meeting rules adds money costs, which end up being paid by the person who buys the meat. Let's look at how these costs affect prices.
Main Kinds of Rule Costs
The costs of getting approved for lab-grown meat are big. Putting together the needed files is the most costly part. It can cost up to £500,000 per product and take over two-and-a-half years to get approval [3]. These files need a lot of science and safety info, making them take a lot of time and resources.
Updating facilities also hits the budget hard. Places where they make the meat must meet tough safety rules, which means putting money into special gear and very clean settings. Plus, regular checks by the Food Standards Agency keep adding to ongoing costs.
Then there are legal fees, which add up fast. Businesses need expert lawyers and helpers to deal with the complex rules. It gets even harder when they try to get approval in many places. For example, if they aim for both the UK and EU, they might need separate files, making costs rise even more.
How Meeting Rule Costs Makes Prices Go Up for Buyers
These rule costs not only affect the companies' money sheets - they show up in what buyers pay at the store. Businesses need to get back these costs, but how much they can add to prices depends on the market. If there are no similar products and demand stays the same, they can charge more. But in markets with many choices, it can be hard to up the price without losing buyers [8].
Studies show that most people won't buy a £18 hamburger that weighs 0.14 kg if it costs more [4]. If rule costs make prices go over this, making people buy it gets tough. Plus, higher prices hit poorer households harder, possibly making the gap between rich and poor wider [8].
Rule Costs vs Other Pricing Factors
Rule costs are just one part of the price story, but they are fixed. Here's how they compare to other big pricing parts:
| Cost Type | Impact on Price | Time Needed | What it Means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rules Costs | £350,000–£500,000 each item | Over 2.5 years | One-time okay, always need to follow rules |
| Making Costs | Changes per item | Always dropping | Goes down as we make more and use new ways |
| Research Costs | Big money up front | 5–10 years | Big costs early, used for many items |
| Growth Costs | Depends on setup | 3–5 years | Costs per item go down when we make more |
Costs to make or scale up often drop over time or as more is made, but costs from rules stay the same for each item. This hits small firms or those with just one item hard, making it tough for them to keep up.
To give you a clear view, look at the drop in costs of lab-made meat. In 2013, the first lab burger cost $330,000 to make. By the end of 2019, it cost just $9.80 for an 8-ounce burger, while normal beef burgers cost $3.44 [5]. Even with this drop in making costs, costs from rules still pose a big roadblock in matching the price of regular meat. This issue points out how key it is to fix issues with rules, which we will look at in the next case study.
Case Study: Regulatory Process for Cultivated Meat in Europe
"Every month we wait for approval, we burn more cash and can't get our product to market", he said. This means they use more money which they then need to make back, and this raises the price of the meat in stores.
Different lengths of time to get the green light in each place show how long waits in Europe make things cost more. Both the producers and the buyers feel this in their wallets.
Taking a look at real life cases shows us that when it takes a long time and a lot of money to get approval in Europe, the price for consumers goes up. Companies that try to get approval in Europe face troubles and costs, and this makes the price of the meat in shops go up.
For example, look at Gourmey being the first ever to try . This French group made the news in July 2024 when they asked for permission under the EU’s Novel Foods rule to sell their new kind of foie gras. At the same time, Gourmey also made requests in Singapore, Switzerland, the UK, and the US [9]. Just the EU part is thought to need at least 18 months from when they ask, while the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) does a deep check to make sure the food is safe [2].
Aleph Farms tried another way and started with Switzerland before the EU. In July 2023, they asked to sell lab-grown meat in Switzerland, where it may take 12–24 months for a yes or no, based on how fast the check goes [10]. This is a big change from Singapore, where it can take as little as three to six months[12]. These big differences in timing add to the costs, which companies then put on to buyers.
These different waiting times show how slow things in Europe can make the price of lab-grown meat go up.
"Bureaucracy in the European Union causes significant delays." [10]
Rules can be extra hard for small firms with few tools. The EFSA's check of risk takes over nine months and may slow down if they ask for more info [11]. Even when EFSA is done, EU nations may stretch the time more by not agreeing [11]. A person from the field said the system is "way too stiff and slow" [12].
Euroconsumers pointed out the troubles too:
"Europe's thorough regulatory regime adds a three- to five-year waiting time, which is too long for poorly funded startups to survive. Consequently, new products either fail or companies are forced to launch their products abroad." [13]
Startups most of the time start off behind, since big rules and high science needs tend to help the big, rich firms more [13]. In 2023, EFSA could only check 22 out of 42 new food asks on time [13].
Even with these hard stops, some think Europe's tough rules are good. Seth Roberts, who leads policy at the Good Food Institute Europe, said:
"Experts can now get to work, using one of the world's most rigorous regulatory processes to assess the safety and nutritional qualities of cultivated meat." [9]
Yet, Europe’s slow and hard-to-guess OK setup keeps rule costs high. This makes lab-grown meat cost more than regular meat. Until these steps get better, the price gap may not close.
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Answers: Cutting Rules Costs
The big rules costs linked to made meat making push prices up. Yet, there are many plans that could make made meat cheaper for buyers in the UK. These methods fight the cost issues right.
Making Rule Steps Easier
A good way to drop costs is to make one set of rules for different areas. Now, broken rules mean firms must do costly steps again for each place. Working with others worldwide to set the same rules could make this easier and less costly.
"Among the top challenges and priorities for regulators and the cultivated meat industry will be establishing clear and harmonised regulatory pathways that ensure food safety." [14]
One more way to cut costs is by sharing stuff and using open data plans. When firms share study info and data, they can dodge redoing costly work. This method cuts down costs for each one and also speeds up the ok-ing process for new players.
"Efforts to provide open-access data, such as approval processes or consultations between cultivated meat companies and regulators, will help to advance the cultivated meat industry and streamline manufacturing." [16]
Also, using safety rules from other fields, such as biomedicine or old food making, can help lab-grown meat firms skip making new steps. Taking up these set ways can cut down time and money used.
"One challenge for the cultivated meat industry is that established safety practices used in the biopharmaceutical industry for processes and inputs will need to be blended with established safety practices employed in the food industry." [16]
Clear rules could help a lot. They cut doubt, letting firms plan well and dodge hold-ups from wrong or lacking forms.
The Part of Teaching Buyers
Not just official changes, knowing helps in cutting costs too. When folks get and trust lab-grown meat, rules might not be so tight.
Sites like Cultivated Meat Shop help teach buyers with facts on how lab-grown meat is made, its safety, and why it's better than old meat. When people know more, they can sway rule choices, aiding firms in getting through approval steps.
UK leaders see how key buyer trust is in making rule work easy. Prof. Robin May, top science man at the Food Standards Agency, said this is big:
"Safe innovation is at the heart of this programme. By prioritising consumer safety and making sure new foods, like CCPs are safe, we can support growth in innovative sectors. Our aim is to ultimately provide consumers with a wider choice of new food, while maintaining the highest safety standards." [15]
People saying yes can make rule checks go fast too. Polls show that about one in three in the UK want to try grown meat [1], giving those who make rules proof that more folks are on board.
Science boss, Lord Vallance, has said too that trust is key to push new things forward:
"By supporting the safe development of cell-cultivated products, we're giving businesses the confidence to innovate and accelerating the UK's position as a global leader in sustainable food production. This work will not only help bring new products to market faster, but strengthen consumer trust, supporting our Plan for Change and creating new economic opportunities across the country." [15]
Open talks on the good and bad of grown meat can help deal with public worries early. This can cut the chance of tight rules.
Getting Closer to the Same Price as Usual Meat
Getting to the same price as old meat is key for the grown meat world. Cutting rule costs is a big part, but tech steps up too. New tools like AI in growing and big bio machines have cut the cost of making by up to 40% and raised how much we make by more than 400% [7].
The look for the world market is good too. Numbers say the grown meat market might hit about £180 billion by 2050, with a yearly growth rate of 30.8% [7]. As more is made, rule costs can be spread over more units, making each cost less.
What other places have done shows what can be done. Singapore said yes to grown meat in December 2020, showing easy rule steps can work well [17]. Also, the U.S. FDA in 2022 said that cultured chicken cells from Upside Foods are safe to eat, showing clear rules can help things move to market faster [5]. These cases give good tips for the UK as it helps this new field grow.
Why the Cost of Rules Matters for Lab-Grown Meat
Rules play a big part in setting the price of lab-grown meat in the UK. Under the Novel Food Rule, it takes at least 18 months and costs from £350,000 to £500,000 to get one product okayed. These big costs end up making the meat more expensive for people who buy it, making it key to have simpler rules to match the price with normal meat.
Good news is that the cost to make it has gone way down. Back in 2013, it cost a huge US$278,000, but now it's just around US$4. Firms are also upping how much they make. For example, Gourmey now makes lab-grown meat for €7 per kilogram when they make a lot, and Meatly has cut the cost of its growth stuff to just £0.22 per litre. These moves in tech and cost are helping make better rules in the UK.
A big new thing is the UK's sandbox program for rules, started in March 2025. This plan helps speed up the okay process but keeps food safe. Professor Robin May, the top science guy at the FSA, says it’s a big deal:
"Ensuring consumers can trust the safety of new foods is one of our most crucial responsibilities. The CCP sandbox programme will enable safe innovation and allow us to keep pace with new technologies being used by the food industry to ultimately provide consumers with a wider choice of safe foods." [19]
By speeding up OK times, this plan may cut shop prices a lot, making made meat cost less for all.
How much people trust is key here too. Sites like Cultivated Meat Shop teach folks about how safe and good made meat is, which helps make the rules come in faster. When people know and feel sure, the rule-makers can work better and faster.
Cutting rule costs is not just to save money - it's key for the long future of the made meat work. The Europe buy of made meat might hit US$818M by 2026, and by 2040, made meat might be 35% of all meat eaten worldwide[18]. As Ed Steele from Hoxton Farms says, "Making the OK process fast is key if the UK wants to win in the world made meat game"[6]. With lower rule costs, non-stop tech advances, and more people saying yes, made meat might soon be a cheap and earth-kind pick for UK buyers.
FAQs
How do rules on cost change the price of grown meat in the UK?
In the UK, rules and tests hit the cost of grown meat hard. To match tough safety and quality rules, firms must do a lot of tests, write many reports, and get through lots of rule checks - all this makes making the meat cost more.
Old-style meat has a good flow of supplies and known rules, but grown meat is still finding its way. These added rule needs now make grown meat cost more for buy. Yet, as more time goes by and as more firms join in, and as rule checks get better, these costs might go down, maybe making grown meat cheap to buy.
How can we cut costs from rules on making lab-grown meat?
Cutting Costs from Rules in Lab-Grown Meat Making
Making rule costs less in making lab-grown meat needs smart moves. One good way seen more now is using serum-free media (SFM). This not just deals with safety worries but makes it easy to follow the rules, helping meet set standards.
A big step forward is making cells that create their own growth stuff. This can cut down costs a lot, as it takes out the need for costly extra things.
Besides these steps, making rules simpler and boosting better working together among the groups in charge can make following the rules clearer and faster. By cutting down on too much red tape and making things run smoother, firms can keep more time and money. These moves all try to make lab-grown meat easy to get and cheap, without losing safety or how good it is, and help it be accepted more by many.
