[Start人] SpaceF "Cultured Meat, Most Similar to Fresh Meat... Production Also Faster"

"Hardly Noticeable Texture Difference"
Protecting Food Security, Animal Rights, and Environment
Serving as a Complement to Existing Industries

Cultured Meat Sausage Developed by SpaceF

SpaceF, a cultured meat development specialist company, announced prototypes of sausages, hamburger patties, and chicken nuggets made from cultured meat earlier this year. They also held a tasting event inviting meat experts and representatives from major distribution companies. Kim Byung-hoon, CEO of SpaceF, said, "The panelists hardly noticed any difference in taste and texture between cultured meat and fresh meat," adding, "The response was very positive, receiving a score of 4.6 out of 5."

Cultured meat refers to meat obtained by harvesting stem cells from livestock such as cattle and pigs and cultivating them using cell engineering technology. CEO Kim stated, "Among various alternative proteins like plant-based proteins and edible insects, cultured meat is the most similar to fresh meat and has the advantage of a fast production speed."

CEO Kim mentioned that it takes about a month to produce 1 kg of meat in the laboratory from a single cell. The production volume depends on how many production facilities are secured. Starting with 50 cells means that 50 kg of meat can be produced within a month.

Graduating with a degree in physics and having worked as a semiconductor engineer at Samsung Electronics, CEO Kim’s first entrepreneurial venture was in the food distribution industry. He was involved in distributing imported food products to domestic large corporations. He explained the background of founding SpaceF, saying, "I realized that there is a greater reliance on imports for food than expected and that the distribution structure is fragile. I wanted to use food tech to enable future generations to use more resources."

Kim Byung-hoon, CEO of Space F

Especially recently, due to COVID-19 and the Ukraine crisis, trade has become unstable, leading to rising grain prices. CEO Kim said, "As food supply and demand have become unstable, interest in alternative meat that can be produced sustainably and safely in factories or laboratories has increased." Notably, SpaceF uses serum-free culture media instead of serum extracted from cattle and pig fetuses, addressing ethical and functional aspects.

CEO Kim stated, "Cultured meat is not meant to replace existing industries or take over markets but to serve as a complementary product," adding, "It is a solution to food security issues and can address animal rights and environmental concerns." He further explained, "In Singapore, the cultured meat market has been opened to protect the environment and secure food supply, and companies worldwide are waiting to build factories and distribute products. Even now, cultured meat burgers can be ordered for delivery through smartphone applications."

A consortium consisting of SpaceF, Seoul National University, Sejong University, Daesang, and Lotte Fine Chemical was recently selected for a cultured meat research project supported by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. They will receive 20 billion KRW in research funding over the next five years. Last year, they secured 7 billion KRW in Series A investment.