Fostering European Cellular Agriculture for Sustainable Transition Solutions

A food system approach to shaping
the future of protein

Mission

FEASTS is a groundbreaking, collaborative research programme with the goal to deliver a comprehensive, unbiased knowledge base about cultured meat and seafood (CM/CSF), and their place in the food system.

Through advanced research, interdisciplinary collaboration, and stakeholder engagement we employ a food-systems thinking approach to help understand the role cultured meat and seafood might play in a resilient, equitable and sustainable food system.

This mission-led approach will serve to develop standards that can shape future development and implementation of these technologies based on transparency, open science and informed by ethical considerations.

Our ambition is for the project findings to serve as support tool for informed policy and decision-making in the EU. 

Demand for meat is soaring and projected to double by 2050, yet animal farming generates 17% of GHG emissions as it supplies only 37% of global proteins and 18% of global calories. Provided vital challenges are addressed, cultured meat and seafood hold the potential to transform animal protein production, allowing us to meet growing global demand, while mitigating the adverse environmental and health impacts related to intensive animal farming, as well as improving animal welfare.

To understand and address these challenges, FEASTS is conducting rigorous analyses regarding the sustainability, ethics, nutritional value, health, and economic and societal impacts of cell-cultured meat and seafood. Results may reveal opportunities to effectively (re)organise the food system and establish resilient CM/CSF value chains in the EU.

Beyond research, FEASTS will help translate knowledge into action through policy recommendations, modelling just transitions for those who supply our food, engaging with consumers and developing a stewardship model for the entire sector of cultured meat and seafood.

By championing responsible and sustainable innovation, FEASTS will help guide development of this field to center on mission goals, maximizing the promise of CM/CSF in the most efficient and socially responsible way possible.

Objectives

Stewardship Model

Establish a stewardship model to guide the development and potential implementation of cultured meat and seafood technologies in the EU in a way that secures overall mission goals.

Set up a collaborative platform fostering international collaboration and research activities to define priorities and strategies towards models of sustainable food production.

Promote open access to information and data by developing mechanisms encouraging data sharing and transparency.
FEASTS will develop standards to guide the future development and implementation of CM/CSF technologies, emphasizing transparency, open science, and ethical considerations.

Multi-Dimensional Impact

Provide a comprehensive and independent study of the multi-dimensional impact of CM and CSF technologies and the sector by adopting systems thinking approach to integrate and model environmental principles, techno-economic considerations and societal aspects.

Promote a sustainability-by-design approach, identify solutions to technological and financial challenges such as new sources of ingredients and more sustainable production, suggest guidelines for industry-wide standards.
Explore scenarios of centralised and decentralised CM/CSF production (TEA, LCA, SLCA, food system modelling) and tailored business models as opportunities to promote food security, minimise environmental impact and enable fair transitions for actors in the current food value chain.

Safety And Nutrition Studies

Centre health and safety by addressing knowledge gaps in nutrition and food safety while promoting rigour, transparency and open collaboration among developers, regulatory agencies and independent researchers. 

Address the European regulatory and food-safety framework of CM/CSF in cooperation with EFSA via open, independently verified research with the goal of defining an adjusted framework for food safety analytics and standards.
Determine nutritional profiles of CM/CSF in comparison with conventional analogues and explore opportunities for tailoring the nutritional composition to benefit human health.

Multi-Stakeholders Approach

Understand the perceptions of risks and opportunities connected with CM/CSF held by consumers, experts, food value chain actors and decision-makers, and use the findings to promote customized, reliable, and science-based communication strategies which directly address specific concerns.

Plan and implement co-creation activities with multiple stakeholders to produce a mutually valued outcome for the food system, ensuring a just transition for all food system actors.
Map CM/CSF value chains, study current and possible future business models and define trajectories for future-proof procurement strategies and resilient value chains, including opportunities for the farming and aquafarming industry.
Study the drivers and barriers of CM/CSF adoption, including ethical challenges and assess the labelling and traceability information needed to foster consumer trust and adoption.

FEASTS Values

FEASTS’ mission-driven approach is based on respect for all people, fair distribution of research benefits, and protecting the values, rights and interests of partners and stakeholders.

FEASTS values

Ethics

The project is guided by ethical principles applied to all areas of research.

Sustainability

The search for the most sustainable solutions underpins all our research endeavors.

Inclusivity

We include the perspectives of all food system actors in our work.

Objectivity

We are committed to objectivity and transparency in all areas of research.

FEASTS is organized into seven work packages, designed to deliver project objectives.

Project management & coordination

Stewardship model: towards a mission driven roadmap

Sustainability by design

Multi-stakeholder engagement, socio-economic & ethical considerations

Food safety, nutrition & regulatory assessment

Integrated & multi-dimensional impact assessment

Communication, dissemination, exploitation & open science

WP 1 Project management & coordination

Objectives: ensure efficient project administration so project objectives are achieved. A vital role includes upholding ethical standards throughout project implementation, ensuring compliance and integrity in all research activities.

Support the management of day-to-day operations and project reporting.
Prepare and implement a Data Management Plan.
Ensure knowledge & innovation management throughout the project.

WP Leader

Prof. Frederico Ferreira

IST-ID

WP 2 – Stewardship model for cultured meat and cultured seafood: towards a mission-driven roadmap

Objectives: establish a stewardship model to help guide the efficient development and potential implementation of cultured meat and seafood technologies in the EU, in a way that secures overall mission goals of positively impacting the environment, human health, and animal welfare, while also improving food security, and minimizing socio-economic disruption during adoption.

Design a conceptual framework for full understanding of CM/CSF sector by adopting a food- systems thinking approach.
Deliver a comprehensive understanding of benchmarks, milestones and support infrastructures required by the CM/CSF sector to achieve commercial viability.
Perform a baseline analysis to guarantee coherent interdisciplinary analyses; perform hotspot screening to identify key drivers of sustainability, economic viability, social innovation and food safety & nutrition.
Design a data system for data sharing and analysis across the CM/CSF value and supply chains to accelerate responsible development of an efficient CM/CSF food system.
Comprehensively document and integrate key project findings, provide directions for the future to support resilient CM/CSF value chains across the field; identify important knowledge gaps.

WP Leader

Dr. Dwayne Holmes

New Harvest’s Director
of Responsible Research
& Innovation – Europe

WP3 – Sustainability by design

Objectives: provide technological knowledge and guidance to foster novel key enabling technologies and processes (KETP) for production of responsible and sustainable cell-based food, namely;

Provide a comprehensive review of existing technologies and available processes (cells, media, scaffolds, bioreactors, food formulation).
Foster approaches that consider the impact of supply chains, materials circularity, and the minimization of waste streams.
Develop or assess novel KETP for strategic case studies.
Provide insights for standards and roadmaps for continuous update of KETPs.

WP Leader

Prof. Frederico Ferreira

IST-ID

WP4 – Multi-stakeholder engagement, socio-economic and ethical considerations

Objectives: understand key stakeholder groups relevant to cultured meat and seafood across Europe and engage them in co-creation strategies which integrate their expectations, needs and interests for the responsible development of the sector.

Map key stakeholder and develop an engagement plan to drive co-creation supporting other work packages.
Evaluate ethical, food justice and animal welfare impact on all stakeholders, advise on improved frameworks.
Study consumer perceptions and drivers of acceptance.
Assess governance of value chains and business models in incumbent cultured meat companies.
Study farming and aqua farming business models, assess opportunities and barriers to producing cell-cultured food on-site and provide blueprint for implementing bioprocessing technology.

WP Leaders

Dr. Francesca Grossi

Senior Project Manager, CSCP

Dr. Britta Holzberg

Senior Project Manager, CSCP

WP5 – Food safety, nutrition and regulatory assessment

Objectives: analyse requirements and procedures for production and marketing of cultured meat and seafood in the EU and compare them with regulatory models used globally; study the nutritional value of CM/CSF and explore potential solutions for nutritional challenges.

Map existing gaps in the regulatory framework and propose guidelines for including the specifications of cultured meat and seafood.
Establish a safety framework for cultured meat and liaise with EFSA to ensure the transfer of up-to-date knowledge.
Study the nutritional value of cultured meat and seafood and explore potential solutions for customised diets.
Map labelling needs and traceability requirements in response to the identified needs of consumers and in compliance with European legislation.

WP Leader

Prof. Leire Escajedo

Professor of Constitutional Law – Law and Ethics in the Biosciences, University of the Basque Country

WP6 – Integrated and Multi-dimensional Impact Assessment

Objectives: assess the environmental, economic, and social impacts of different types of cultured products (structured, hybrid, non-structured) and production methods (centralized, decentralized) by comparing them to traditional products or other alternative proteins.

Assess the environmental impact of CM/CSF life cycle for different supply models and categories of products.
Provide techno-economic assessment and life cycle cost analysis; assess FEASTS project solutions in an iterative manner.
Perform social life cycle assessment to understand social risks and benefits of the proposed solutions compared to the alternatives on the market.
Develop a system dynamics model as a decision support tool for understanding key dynamics and conditions in the sector from different angles (political, environmental, social, technological, legal, institutional, and economic) under different scenarios.
Develop an assessment framework for comparative analysis of the sustainability, economic and social performance of CM/CSF products throughout their life cycle compared to traditional agriculture products and alternative protein products.

WP Leader

Shashank Goyal

LCA Consultant
at EurA AG

WP7 – Communication, dissemination, exploitation and open science

Objectives: maximize the impact of FEASTS through efficient and targeted dissemination and communication activities directed at identified audiences including researchers, CM/CSF producers, food industry actors, investors, farmers and aquafarmers, decision and policymakers, and consumers.

Develop communication and dissemination tools to for knowledge transfer and public outreach.
Establish synergies and create a strong network with other related projects and initiatives.
Establish active dialogue with policymakers, consumers and potential stakeholders, monitor developments, and contribute valuable insights to upcoming food system legislation.
Define and promote a model of development for CM/CSF based on open science practices.
Consolidate the post-project exploitation strategy for the project.

WP Leader

Anna Hadrych

Communication
& Events Project Manager, EIT Food CLC NE