BlueNalu’s whole-muscle, cell-based yellowtail (Photo: BlueNalu)

Would you eat a fish fillet that has never touched an ocean? Cell-cultured seafood offers just that

UNITED STATES
Tuesday, April 13, 2021, 07:10 (GMT + 9)

The future of our oceans is in the headlines once more following the release of the controversial Netflix documentary Seaspiracy.

Having soared to the top of Netflix’s UK Top 10 within days of its release, the film takes viewers on a whistle-stop tour of the fishing industry’s environmental and ethical challenges, from plastic waste to overfishing and human trafficking.

Fishing groups, scientists and NGOs have accused the filmmakers of misrepresenting the science and unfairly representing their work. Nevertheless, the film’s final conclusion – that to eat sustainably viewers must quit eating fish altogether – has prompted some viewers to swear off seafood.

But what if there was a way of eating fish without causing environmental damage? Most people have heard of lab-grown meat. But scientists at a handful of start-ups are also serving up slices of fresh seafood that have never been near an ocean.

Image: BLueNalu

Proponents of this lab-grown fish – the industry uses the term “cell-cultured” – say growing fish slices in tanks could provide the answer to fishing’s sustainability problem. A single fish could provide food for thousands of people while leaving ocean populations untouched. Plus, cell-cultured fillets would be free from the microplastics and chemical pollution now found in almost every wild-caught fish.

The challenge is similar to growing meat cells for a burger or steak. First scientists need to take a sample from a fish, then “grow” those cells in a container using a nutrient broth. Most of the time, a biological “scaffold” is used to direct the cells’ growth, helping to create the moist, flaky texture of a real fish fillet.

Fewer than 10 companies in the world are working on this technology. Most are just a few years old, and only a handful of people have taste-tested their products. But already they are promising to have cell-cultured seafood on consumers’ plates within the decade. That is, in part, because developing a soft and flaky fish fillet is more straightforward then growing the tough muscle tissue of a beef steak, explains Lou Cooperhouse, the president and chief executive of US start-up BlueNalu. “Ultimately, it will be a simpler process to replicate the sensory characteristics of seafood versus red meat,” he tells i. “Red meat is, literally and figuratively, very tough.”

BlueNalu is hunting the holy grail of the cell-cultured fish industry: bluefin tuna. One of the most overfished species in the world, they are now so rare that prized specimens can sell for well over a million dollars. Growing bluefin tuna fillets on demand would transform its market, Mr Cooperhouse argues.

“Today you have a supply restricted model for bluefin tuna,” he says. “That’s true of most fish, but really so with bluefin. If we created a demand-driven model, everybody could enjoy bluefin tuna.”

Earlier this year, BlueNalu raised $60m from its investors, and is building its first pilot production facility in San Diego, where it is based. Cooperhouse estimates the firm could be rolling out fillets of mahi-mahi, yellowtail, red snapper and bluefin tuna to customers in the UK within the decade.

Image: BLueNalu

Other cell-cultured companies have their sights set on different prizes. Wildtype, another US start-up, is focusing on developing cell-cultured salmon fillets, while Singapore-based Shiok Meats is developing the world’s first cell-cultured shrimps, crabs and lobsters. Avant Meats, based in Hong Kong, is taking a three-pronged approach. To capture the interest of potential Asian customers, it has developed cell-cultured fish maw, the swim bladder of a fish that is considered a delicacy in China. It has also developed a fish fillet for Western markets, and cell-cultured fish collagen for use in skincare products.

Image: BLueNalu

Co-founder and chief executive Carrie Chan says marketing strategies for cell-cultured seafood will differ around the world. US and European shoppers might be more convinced by the sustainability benefits, she explains, while in Asia consumers are more driven by traceability and product safety.

“In the US or more developed regions, food security is taken for granted – people in this part of the world, need to be super vigilant,” she tells i. “What is driving the Asian customer base is the question, ‘will it benefit me or my health?’”

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