Regulators in Singapore had issued the company the world’s first approval for its cultured meats. The decision paves the way for Eat Just, which is best known for its plant-based egg substitute, to sell its lab-grown chicken as an ingredient in Singapore. And it will also likely draw more competitors to the Southeast Asian country and could prompt other countries to follow Singapore’s lead. Cultured meat is made by putting stem cells from the fat or muscle of an animal into a culture medium that feeds the cells, allowing them to grow. The medium is then put into a bioreactor to support the cells’ growth. Eat Just has been working toward gaining approval from the Singapore Food Agency for about two years. To do so, it had to meet food safety requirements for novel foods and demonstrate a consistent manufacturing process for the cell-cultured chicken. Safety and quality inspections determined that it also met the standards for poultry meat. “We think that [the way] to really solve the meat problem which is a health problem, a deforestation problem, a morality problem is to make animal protein,” said Josh Tetrick, CEO of Eat Just.

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