Magic Valley creates cultivated pork as its next alt-protein solution

With the global cultivated meat market set to reach $630 billion by 2040, Australia has an enormous opportunity to contribute to this burgeoning industry aligned with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

Following on from the launch of its cultivated lamb last year, Melbourne-based agrifood startup Magic Valley is now launching its cultivated pork, which is designed to provide the same flavour experience as traditionally farmed pork.

The cultivated pork product is made from skin cells taken from a living pig, which are then cultivated into stem cells using a mixture of amino acids and other nutrients used as food for cell growth.

Magic Valley’s technology uses no animal by-products such as foetal bovine serum (FBS) in the production process. The cells are able to grow infinitely, turning into both muscle and fat. This means that the initial skin scraping is all that is required to make unlimited quantities of the meat. The technology is scalable across all different types of meats, not just pork and lamb.

Magic Valley’s founder and CEO, Paul Bevan, said developing alternative proteins is one of the keys to meeting the demands of the growing population and reaching net-zero goals.

Magic Valley's next step is cultivated beef, with its sights set on regulation come 2024.