Meatable to partner TruMeat in building a cultivated pork facility in Singapore

SINGAPORE – Dutch cultivated meat company Meatable is working with Singapore’s TruMeat to set up what could be the first large-scale production facility for lab-grown meat in the city-state.

The two companies plan to begin construction later this year, although they have not disclosed the specific capacity or dimensions of the bioreactors to be used.

The factory will be built using Meatable’s proprietary technology, while TruMeat will manage its operations and oversee the scale-up process.

According to Meatable, the goal is to achieve cost-effective production levels that would support the development and testing of cultivated pork products for its commercial partners.

The announcement comes as Meatable awaits food safety approval from the Singapore Food Agency, which the company had expected by the first quarter of 2025.

The partnership with TruMeat will also focus on refining production processes and growth media to improve efficiency as the company prepares to enter the market.

Meatable CEO Jeff Tripician said the collaboration marks a critical step in bringing its cultivated meat closer to the market, adding that TruMeat’s capabilities align with the company’s aim to reach commercial scale.

TruMeat chairman James Chui expressed confidence in the partnership, stating that Meatable’s technology shows strong promise and that the combined expertise could help lower production costs and expand globally.

Meatable currently operates out of a facility in Leiden, Netherlands, where it uses 200-litre bioreactors and has room to expand capacity to 500 litres.

The company’s process relies on pluripotent stem cells (PSCs), which have the natural ability to multiply rapidly, unlike modified immortalised cell lines.

This approach is combined with a perfusion technique that supports continuous production and yields high cell density, enabling the firm to generate muscle and fat cells within four days.

Previously, Meatable has partnered with Singapore’s ESCO Aster and plant-based producer Love Handle as part of its regional strategy.

Tripician said in a recent interview that Meatable aims to serve traditional meat companies by supplying them with cultivated meat as a raw material.

He noted that regulatory progress in Singapore could also help the company secure approvals in other jurisdictions, with dossiers submitted in at least six countries.

Meatable has already hosted tasting events in Singapore and at its headquarters in the Netherlands and is planning to raise an additional US$35 million in a Series C funding round, adding to the US$95 million it has secured so far.

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