UK Food Standards Agency launches regulatory programme for cell-cultivated products

A team of scientists and regulatory experts will now begin work on the two-year programme, collaborating with academic bodies, the CCP industry and trade organisations. Their aim is to gather rigorous scientific evidence about CCPs and how they are made, to inform how the FSA and Foods Standards Scotland (FSS) regulate these products.

The evidence will enable the FSA to assess CCP applications more efficiently and make sure they are safe before they can be sold to consumers. The FSA will provide clearer guidance to businesses, and address questions that must be answered before any CCPs can enter the market. Through the programme, the FSA is committed to completing the full safety assessment of two CCPs within the next two years.

Professor Robin May, Chief Scientific Advisor at the FSA, said: “Safe innovation is at the heart of this programme. By prioritising consumer safety and making sure new foods, like CCPs are safe, we can support growth in innovative sectors. Our aim is to ultimately provide consumers with a wider choice of new food, while maintaining the highest safety standards.”