[Integriculture Co., Ltd.] Calnet
Introducing the development progress of the consortium, a Japanese open innovation platform specializing in cellular agriculture, in its fourth year of operation.
*Integriculture Co., Ltd.*
Press release: September 3, 2024
**
Introducing the development progress of the Calnet Consortium, a Japanese open innovation platform specializing in cellular
agriculture, in its fourth year of operation.
*Development projects in four areas, multiple patent applications, and plans to commercialize cellular agriculture*
*
Cellular agriculture is an emerging industry area that is attracting attention as a new sustainable food resource option and an innovative solution to the future protein crisis. While cellular agriculture is expected to reduce environmental impact and conserve grain resources, in order to scale it up as an industry and implement it in society, it is necessary to develop and optimize various elemental technologies. It is essential to develop products and build supply chains that take advantage of the characteristics of cultured meat. *
* IntegriCulture Co., Ltd. (Head Office: Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo,
Representative Director: Yuki Hanyu, hereinafter referred to as the “Company”) is a core technology based on the CulNet(R) system. (Carnet
We have strengths in cutting-edge cell culture technology, including systems (systems), but in developing core production technology, collaboration with companies that have advanced technology in each field is key. *
Starting in April 2021, we will launch CulNet, a platform that collaborates with companies with high technological capabilities in related fields, based on the world’s unprecedented knowledge and technology that we have cultivated through research and development, in order to implement cellular agriculture in society. (R)︎(Carnet) This year marks the fourth year since the establishment of the “Consortium” (hereinafter referred to as the “Consortium”). Through our efforts on this platform, we are proceeding with a number of joint research projects. In this release, we present the main results of the consortium.
Overall development status of the consortium
As of September 1, 2024, there are 15 participating companies in the consortium, and the project is underway with the aim of developing various elemental technologies in four areas (Figure 1). At present, the construction of the cultured meat manufacturing process has almost been completed, and we will continue to move forward with further efforts toward the first market launch in Japan.
The consortium has leveraged the high technological capabilities of the participating companies to collaborate in an effective manner to resolve technical issues in cellular agriculture. As a result, in just four years since the consortium was established, the number of patent applications in the field of cellular agriculture has reached 10 (including plans), and further developments are expected in the future (Figure 2).
According to the 2020 “Needs-Responsive Technology Trend Survey (Cultured Meat Related Technology)” reported by the Japan Patent Office, the number of patent applications filed by the consortium in four years was the total number of patent applications in Japan from 2013 to 2019. This corresponds to 22.7% of the total number of projects, making it the most active organization in Japan in research and development (Reference link 1). The consortium will further accelerate development in the future, aiming for the industrialization and social implementation of cellular agriculture.
Reference link 1
Japan Patent Office Needs-ready technology trend survey “Cultured meat related technology” (FY2021 mobile micro survey summary version)
Figure 1. Results according to the production flow of cultured meat (duck liver-derived cells) and the development status of each elemental technology
Figure 2. Changes in the number of patent applications filed by the consortium
*Introducing specific development projects of participating companies (picked up 4 companies)*
-Cost reduction of basal medium-
Japan Tobacco Inc./Tablemark Co., Ltd.
One of the challenges to popularizing cellular agriculture is reducing the cost of culture media. We are developing a basal culture medium made from food ingredients that minimizes the use of highly processed ingredients.
-Pursuit of cost-effectiveness through food-grade basal medium- Nacalai Tesque Co., Ltd.
Various technologies are required before cultured meat reaches consumers. In this context, we are focusing on culture fluids for growing cultured meat, and are working to develop cost-effective culture fluids that use safe and reliable raw materials that are also used in food.
-Food grade of 3D scaffold-
Saneigen FFI Co., Ltd.
Our company has developed a scaffold that enables 3D culture. This scaffold is made of food-grade material and is capable of culturing a variety of cells at unprecedentedly high densities. We will continue to work on improving the performance of scaffolds and optimizing culture conditions.
– Study on improving supply performance of cell-useful factors using highly functional materials –
UBE Co., Ltd.
Stable production of cultured meat requires a stable long-term supply of useful factors produced by organ cells. We will take on the challenge of solving these issues by making the environment in which cells live more comfortable.
Due to the consortium’s successful results, membership is on the rise, and new companies are expected to join next year. We are also considering using the results and products developed by the consortium in our new service, “Katteba.”
While sharing the latest information with our member companies, we will pave the way to a sustainable future through the social implementation of cellular agriculture.
Message from IntegriCulture Co., Ltd. Representative Director: Yuki Hanyu Challenges currently facing the cellular agriculture industry include the transition from biopharmaceuticals to food grade, production scale, quality assurance, and intellectual property rights, many of which are due to an underdeveloped supply chain. That’s what I think. We believe that collaborations like the CulNet consortium are one of the most effective ways to overcome this chicken-and-egg situation. Several years have passed since the consortium was launched, but innovation still needs time. We will continue this long-term initiative.
■ Integriculture Co., Ltd.
< https://integriculture.com
Our company is the first cellular agriculture company in Japan, founded in 2015. Cellular agriculture is a new industry that is expected to be a solution to the “protein crisis,” in which the demand for proteins will exceed the supply in the near future, but cell culture itself is an expensive production method and There are issues such as the safety of these products has not been confirmed. At our company, we use our proprietary technology “CulNet(R) system”. In addition to opening up the possibility of significant cost reductions in cell culture using the “Cell Culture System”, we have also succeeded in developing cell culture materials using only raw materials that have already been used as food. In the future, while making full use of these technologies, we will work to bring food products made from cultured cells to market, as well as advance further research and development to realize and popularize cellular agriculture, which allows people to experience the potential of new food. We will aim for this.
■ CulNet(R) system
The Carnet system is a system that mimics the interactions between organs within the animal body. In a lab-scale demonstration
experiment, we
We have successfully created a serum-like component using this system. As a result, we have realized cell culture without adding FBS or growth factors, which were considered essential for cell culture. Furthermore, FBS is considered to have issues in terms of both cost and animal welfare, and an alternative to it has been sought. carnet The system is expected to be a platform technology for cell
agriculture that realizes “low-cost cell culture” that does not require FBS or growth factors.
■CulNet(R)️ Consortium
The world’s population is expected to reach 10 billion by 2050, and it is feared that conventional methods will not be able to keep up with the supply of protein due to depletion of energy, feed, land, water, etc. Plant-derived raw materials are being commercialized as protein sources to replace meat, and cultured meat derived from animal cells is attracting attention as an alternative protein that is closer to meat.
However, there are many issues in terms of production costs, safety, scaling up, etc., so we are asking companies with high technical capabilities in various fields to participate in solving issues such as culture media, scaffolds, and culture equipment. On April 1, 2021, with the aim of realizing a cultured meat supply chain, Calnet A consortium was established.
Currently, the Carnet Consortium is in its fourth year since its establishment, and there are 15 participating companies (*). For more information about the Calnet Consortium, please see
Visit https://integriculture.com/product/.
(*) Companies participating in the Calnet Consortium (15 companies, in alphabetical order, as of September 1, 2024)
Integriculture Co., Ltd., A
Laboratories LLC, Asahi Kasei Corporation, Ebara Corporation, San-Ei Gen FFI Co., Ltd., Sumitomo Riko Co., Ltd., Daiwa Seikan Co., Ltd., Nacalai Tesque Co., Ltd., Japan Tobacco Inc., Hamano Manufacturing Co., Ltd. 5 more companies
■Kateba
(English name: “Open Cellular Agriculture Technology Transfer Ecosystem” Base: Ocatte
Base)
Katsubaba is a marketplace for cell farmers that aims to provide food raw materials and information on cell agriculture. Originally, Kataba was a kitchen, and it was also the place where the foundations of Japanese food culture were laid. This service has been named “Katteba” in hopes of realizing a future where anyone around the world can prepare cultured meat in the same way they would cook in a kitchen, and furthermore, in the hope that a new food culture will blossom in the future. I did.
In addition to culture-related materials such as culture media derived from food ingredients, the knowledge and experience accumulated through the research and development of cultured meat will be key elements for proceeding with studies and commercialization in this field. By quickly opening and providing these essential requirements, this service supports the creation of an environment in which companies aiming to participate in cellular agriculture can more smoothly consider and start business.
[Contact information regarding this matter]
Integri Culture Co., Ltd. Contact Desk
-info@integriculture.com-
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Business Development Department Support Business Team Tomo
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