Cape Town-based startup creates Africa’s first lab-grown beef burger
Cape Town-based startup creates Africa’s first lab-grown beef burger
| John Maytham interviews Brett Thompson, co-founder and CEO of the Mzansi Meat Company.
Start-up based in Cape Town, Mzansi Meat Companycreated Africa’s first cultured beef burger.
His goal is to find a way to make healthier, more environmentally friendly meat products that taste like farmed livestock.
The meat patty’s journey begins at Mzansi Meat Farm Animal Sanctuary where veterinarians do a biopsy by taking tissue cells from free-range animals.
After the cells are harvested, a sample is taken to the laboratory in Woodstock, Cape Town, where the food specialist isolates the cells and grows them in culture medium, a special type of food containing vitamins, salts and proteins that cells need to grow. and divide.
Once they have enough cells, they place them on an edible structure and after adding a few more flavorings, the cultured meat is ready to be served.
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Yesterday we unveiled our grown beef burgers here at #The cap and we can’t wait for you to try them! This is just the beginning for us – the fire is lit and the braai begins 😎🔥 pic.twitter.com/uZzYBfRSnL
— Mzansi Meat Co. (@MzansiMeatCo) April 13, 2022
🤤🍔🔥 #MzansiBurgerLaunch pic.twitter.com/FpINKIzKHO
— Mzansi Meat Co. (@MzansiMeatCo) April 12, 2022
Today I got to taste Africa’s first cultured beef burger unveiled by @MzansiMeatCo to @Cape_IT Biotechnology laboratory. Produce industries of the future, by creating a bridge between research and commercialization. Cape Town is at the forefront of innovation and transformation. pic.twitter.com/BxcOgJbmyf
— James Vos (@VosJames) April 12, 2022
[We] essentially simply replicates the conditions found in an animal outdoors. It’s 37 degrees, its amino acids, its fats, its sugars… After about 3 or 4 weeks, you are able to harvest and produce a burger.
Brett Thompson – Co-Founder and Managing Director of Mzansi Meat Company
In terms of cost, we’re currently in an R&D phase so it’s quite expensive, but we want to be price parity with meat probably within the next five years.
Brett Thompson – Co-Founder and Managing Director of Mzansi Meat Company
Our aim is to hit the market within the next 18 months and land at a price on a flatbread in a restaurant of around R100-175. A premium product for now, but as we grow we hope to bring that price down.
Brett Thompson – Co-Founder and Managing Director of Mzansi Meat Company
Scroll to the top of the article to listen to the interview.
This article first appeared on CapeTalk: Cape Town-based startup creates Africa’s first lab-grown beef burger
Cape Town-based startup creates Africa’s first lab-grown beef burger
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