3D-printed farmed meat company Steakholder Foods (NASDAQ: STKH ), formerly MeaTech 3D, has announced the world’s first 3D bio-printed farmed fish product. A recently developed prototype was one Ready-to-cook grouper fillets, printed with customized bio-ink using grouper cells provided by Umami Meats.
Supported by a grant from the Singapore-Israel Industrial R&D Foundation (SIIRD), Umami Meats and Steakholder Foods work to develop a scalable process to produce structured farmed fish products using Stakeholder Foods’ proprietary 3D bio-printing technology and customized bio-ink. This 3D fish printing represents a successful and meaningful milestone in their partnership.
Eric Kaufman, CEO of Stakeholder Foods, said: “We are excited to work with Umami Meats to create 3D-printed structured fish products that have the same great taste and texture as traditionally caught fish, without harming the environment.”
World’s first farmed fish fillet
Stakeholder Foods celebrated this achievement by hosting a tasting event at its Israel facilities. At a “grouper fish chef’s table,” signature Israeli and Singaporean-style fish dishes prepared by the company’s chef, Moran Lido, were available for tasting.
Besides Umami Meats CEO Mihir Parshad and other dignitaries, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the Stakeholder Foods Laboratory, where he witnessed the 3D-printing process and sampled farmed fish, becoming the first Prime Minister to taste the product.
“We are delighted to partner with Stakeholder Foods to produce the world’s first fully filleted farmed fish. In this first tasting, we showcased a farmed product that flakes, tastes and melts in your mouth just like fine fish. In the coming months, we look forward to announcing our plans to bring this world-class farmed fish to market,” commented Mihir Parshad, CEO of Umami Meats.
Extension cooperation
After receiving grouper fish cells from Umami Meats, Stakeholder Foods said its team worked to customize its bio-ink for a grouper prototype with optimized taste and texture. The Israeli food tech claims its patent-pending technology enables it to replicate the flaky texture of cooked fish in a product after printing.
In a statement, the company said being able to customize its bio-inks to external cell lines is a significant step toward commercializing its 3D bioprinter. This proves that its platform can produce structural hybrids and cultivated products of various species, opening the door to collaboration with other industry players.
“After developing a customized bio-ink that works effectively with umami cells and optimizes taste and texture to meet high consumer standards, we look forward to expanding our collaboration with additional partners to a greater variety,” added Kaufman.