Upside Foods, a cultivated meat, poultry and seafood company, is announcing that it has completed the premarket regulatory review process for its cultivated chicken after obtaining a Grant of Inspection (GOI) from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. This follows Upside Foods' announcement earlier this month that its label has been approved by USDA. With this approval, Upside Foods can now start commercial production and sales of its cultivated chicken, taking a historic step toward building a more humane, sustainable and resilient food system.

In November 2022, Upside Foods became the first company in the world to receive the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's green light for cultivated meat. The GOI and label approval from USDA means that Upside Foods has demonstrated compliance with USDA regulations for food safety and labeling of poultry products. Since cultivated chicken is grown directly from real chicken cells, the company is subject to similar rigorous inspections and food safety standards as conventionally produced poultry. Having obtained full regulatory clearance in the U.S. for its cultivated chicken, Upside Foods can now begin commercial production at its Engineering, Production, and Innovation Center (EPIC). Upside will make its market debut with a whole-textured chicken product that is over 99% cultivated chicken cells.

"I'm thrilled to share that cultivated meat will now be available for consumers in the U.S.," said Dr. Uma Valeti, CEO and founder of Upside Foods. "This approval will fundamentally change how meat makes it to our table. It's a giant step forward towards a more sustainable future - one that preserves choice and life. We are excited to launch with our signature, whole-textured UPSIDE chicken and can't wait for consumers to taste the future."

Following this regulatory approval, Upside processed the first order of its cultivated chicken, placed by three-Michelin-star Chef Dominique Crenn. Upside's cultivated chicken will be launched in the U.S. in limited quantities through select restaurant partners, starting with Chef Crenn's restaurant Bar Crenn in San Francisco.

Upside also announced a contest where consumers can enter for a chance to be among the first in the United States to eat Upside's cultivated chicken. Consumers can visit Upside's Instagram, Facebook and Twitter accounts to enter.

"We at UPSIDE Foods have long championed the dual regulatory jurisdiction of FDA and USDA, starting with a historic partnership with the North American Meat Institute in 2018. Since then, our team has been working diligently with both agencies to bring our cultivated chicken to market," said Eric Schulze, Ph.D., VP of global and scientific affairs at Upside Foods. "We are grateful for the FDA's and USDA's thoughtful and rigorous review processes, which have enabled us to start bringing safe, delicious, and high-quality cultivated meat products to market in the U.S."

This announcement comes after a series of milestones as Upside Foods approaches commercialization, including receiving the world's first "green light" for cultivated meat from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, a $400 million Series C, placing the company's valuation at over $1 billion, and the expansion of Upside Foods' product portfolio to include ground cultivated meat products. In addition, Upside will continue its work with FDA and USDA to bring its next consumer products to market, including sausages, nuggets and dumplings.

Source: Upside Foods