The San Francisco-based company, Wild Type grow “clean meat” salmon from cells. Recently, they rolled-out first tasting of product – which was world’s first sushi created with cellular agriculture technology.
On a Medium post last week, Wild Type announced that it had just rolled-out its first tasting of lab-grown Coho and Chinook salmon at the Olympia Oyster Bar in Portland, Oregon, USA.
The project is the brainchild of former U.S. diplomat, Justin Kolbeck and cardiology researcher, Aryé Elfenbein, MD. “This night was a milestone for us for a number of reasons. It was the first time we had produced over a pound of Wild Type salmon for a single event,” the company wrote.
The menu served up spicy “cellular” salmon rolls and Kolbeck told Bloomberg estimated that each serving cost USD 200 to produce. The company hopes to eventually produce full slabs of lab-grown salmon at a competitive retail cost of USD7 to USD8 per pound, the founder explained.
Wild Type grows salmon meat outside of the animal, starting with cells that are able to both proliferate and become the structures that comprise meat (i.e. muscle, fat, connective tissue, et cetera). But they can only do this currently in small quantities as the salmon become too flaky if heated above 212 degrees Fahrenheit – which is why the menu was mostly raw or served with citrus juice. The company told Bloomberg that it plans to have a version of the product that can withstand heat in the coming months.
Last October, Elfenbein told SalmonBusiness that they were not aiming to disrupt existing industries. “Meeting the growing demand for fish and meat will require a number of complementary approaches, both familiar and novel. We hope to work alongside established producers to provide sustainable, delicious, affordable, and nutritious salmon to consumers.”
