Cultured meat: IFFA is focusing on this topic

Frankfurt am Main, July 04.07.2023th, 2025. The market for cultured meat in Germany and Europe is considered promising. From XNUMX, the IFFA will focus on this major topic of the future and for this reason spoke to Ivo Rzegotta from the Good Food Institute Europe about the current status of alternatives to meat from animal husbandry. Promising startups and established companies from Germany are already playing an important role in cell cultivation.

The IFFA is the world's leading trade fair for innovations in process technology for meat and alternative proteins. New plant-based products, innovative fermentation processes and the future topic of cultivated meat are changing our entire food system and will be discussed at IFFA. We spoke to Ivo Rzegotta, Senior Policy Manager for Germany at the Good Food Institute Europe, about the challenges and opportunities in this transformation process.

Mr. Rzegotta, the market for alternative proteins is growing; more people want to eat more sustainably and consume less conventional meat. The spectrum of alternative protein products ranges from completely plant-based meat substitutes to hybrid products and cultured meat. Can you give us an overview of how these individual segments are currently developing in Germany?

“At least 1.150 companies worldwide produce plant-based alternatives to animal products, including both innovative start-ups and established companies in the food industry. At least 70 of them are based in Germany, and there are also numerous companies that promote development in this area as B2B companies.

Within Europe, Germany is by far the largest market for plant-based alternative products. In terms of sales, the overall German market for plant-based foods grew by 2022 percent to 11 billion euros in 1,9, and by a total of 2020 percent since 42. We continue to expect dynamic growth, because the quality of the products is increasing, and we see a lot of innovation in categories that previously had some catching up to do – for example plant-based fish products or structured products such as plant-based steak.

Currently, the market for alternative proteins consists almost entirely of plant-based products. The market launch of cultured meat and fermentation-based products will take some time in Germany, and hybrid products made from animal and plant-based protein have so far only been a niche product. However, representative population surveys show that consumers are particularly open to cultivated and fermentation-based products in this country, which makes Germany a very promising market for these sustainable options.”

Cultured meat is not yet approved as a food in Europe. When do you think cultured meat will be available and what are the current obstacles on the way? Where is Germany?
In recent months we have seen great progress towards bringing cultured meat to market. The first products have now been approved in the USA and corresponding procedures are also under way in other markets. When the products come onto the market in Germany and Europe essentially depends on two things: On the one hand, the manufacturing costs have to be reduced further and the necessary production capacities have to be built up before the products can reach the mass market. In addition to private investments, significantly more public funding is needed in the areas of research and infrastructure. Germany has invested a lot in the energy transition and the transport transition, a comparable effort to promote the food transition is still pending.

On the other hand, cultured meat falls within the scope of the EU's Novel Food Regulation. As a result, cultured meat products must undergo a thorough food safety screening before they can be sold in the EU. However, the process is currently very bureaucratic and takes significantly longer than in other regions of the world. The German government should give companies more support with tailor-made consulting services.

In Germany there are a number of promising start-ups in the field of cell cultivation, but above all Germany as an important industrial location is a pioneer in the upstream areas - for example in the development of sustainable culture media or in the construction of fermenters for cultivation and fermentation. German companies such as Merck, The Cultivated B and GEA are positioning themselves far beyond Germany as the backbone of this new industry.”

Another exciting field is fermentation. Fermentation uses microorganisms to create products that look and taste like meat and have the same cooking characteristics. Where are we in this process and how could the process be advanced?
Within the alternative protein sector, column fermentation is just beginning to realize its full potential. At least 136 companies worldwide are currently working on the production of sustainable proteins based on modern fermentation processes. Germany is very well positioned in this area, because this country has the third most startups after the USA and Israel, for example Formo, Mushlabs and Kynda. The German ecosystem is thus on the way to becoming a global powerhouse in this emerging category.

Basically, the challenges in fermentation are the same as in cell cultivation: the technologies behind it work and companies have shown that they can be used to produce tasty and sustainable products. But in order to bring the production price up to par with the animal counterparts and to produce appreciable quantities of it, an effort is now needed to build up capacity. Both private investors and political decision-makers are in demand here.”

You said that in Germany we have all the prerequisites to be a global pioneer in the transition to nutrition and protein. How do you come to this assessment? And don't you think that other states, such as Israel, Singapore, the USA and the Netherlands, are already ahead of us here?
Experience shows that the most successful ecosystems for alternative protein sources arise where governments actively shape the sector to leverage economic, environmental and health potential. Israel and Singapore are pioneers in this area. Large industrial countries such as the USA, China and Japan are now also on the way and see the promotion of alternative proteins as a strategic lever in their economic policy. So far, however, no state has an unassailable lead in this area.

If the German federal government now implements the commitment from the coalition agreement to promote alternative protein sources, then Germany can move up to the top. Because basically we have everything that is needed here: an innovative start-up landscape, a strong food industry and agriculture, an excellent research system and open-minded consumers.

It is now crucial that politicians set the right course in the areas of research funding, infrastructure development, regulation and fair competition and help the established players in agriculture and the food industry with the transformation. Above all, what is needed now is a national roadmap that sets out in a binding manner what needs to be done to make Germany the global innovation leader in the field of alternative proteins by 2030.”

The IFFA, Technology for Meat and Alternative Proteins, takes place every three years in Frankfurt am Main. It is the world's leading trade fair for innovations in process technology for meat and alternative proteins. In addition to the IFFA, Messe Frankfurt organizes other events for the global food industry. These international exhibitions in Argentina, Thailand and the USA show the trends and innovations and network experts from all over the world.

IFFA
Technology for Meat and Alternative Proteins
The next IFFA will take place from May 3 - 8.5.2025, XNUMX.

https://iffa.messefrankfurt.com