Written by Brodie Peace and Tamara Cole
Magic Valley, the second cultivated meat company established in Australia, hosted its first public outreach event from the comfort of their Brunswick based HQ. The evening provided an assortment of tasty vegan finger food and seating for guests to get comfortable and strike up a conversation before the presentation began. CEO and founder Paul Bevan shared the insights of his upbringing and career changes spanning finance, martial arts, running successful businesses and vegan activism, that eventually led to the founding of Magic Valley.
After a short and informative exposé of traditional animal agriculture and the drivers for producing cultivated meat, Paul invited Head of R&D Andrew Laslett, and Head of Innovation Jacob Goodwin to the front. The atmosphere was at ease with the leaders sharing an obvious and amusing camaraderie as they directed and rejected questions amongst each other. With a vibrant crowd in a filled room, dialogue was lively with an audience keen to engage in conversation about Magic Valley’s novel products.
Some highlights from the Q&A include the announcement that Magic Valley are using induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to produce cultivated lamb. Genetic modification has not been used, and there is no intention of using genetic modification in any of the final products. Paul has stayed true to his vegan roots having never used animal ingredients, including FBS (fetal bovine serum) in any of their products.
When asked what the major bottlenecks were, they identified the major bottleneck as the size of bioreactors, however, they are confident in the advice from their expert consultant that the technology is nearly there. Two other bottlenecks were acknowledged; effective and affordable media ingredients, and ensuring consumer satisfaction so that customers keep coming back. They also acknowledged that they believe they could develop processes which would fit the guidelines of different religious dietary choices, such as Halal and Kosher dietary requirements.
Production is still in the bench top research stage and production volumes are small. Magic Valley did reveal, however, that they are in regular conversation with FSANZ (Food Standards Australia and New Zealand), to which they will need to apply for regulatory approval when ready. They are currently looking to raise $5 million in an investment seed round. The team will be expanding in the new year, with some new bioprocess engineering hires to help in the development of denser products using hollow fibre bioreactor designs.
Magic Valley’s outreach event provided not only a platform for the public to learn about Magic Valley itself, but was a place for like-minded people in the burgeoning industry of cellular agriculture to come together.
Consumer acceptance is essential for the success of the cellular agriculture industry as it transitions from the R&D (research and development) phase into scale-up and commercialisation. Beginning a dialogue with the general public creates a platform for communication and transparency between industry and consumer, thus enabling confidence in Cell Ag technology and products. New technology, particularly that which is anticipated to disrupt systems as usual, can often be met with scepticism and mistrust. For example, public mistrust in genetic modification provides a lesson to learn from, and avoid. Thus, early engagement between public and industry could indeed be the key to successful consumer acceptance.
To engage future consumers, more nights like these are needed to provide more transparency to the field and initiate conversations about cellular agriculture’s future, both in Australia and internationally.
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