Agronomics Investee Upside Foods Clears USDA Hurdle for Lab-Grown Chicken

By David Sachs

Agronomics said Friday that its investee company Upside Foods is one regulatory step away from selling lab-produced chicken in the U.S. after the Agriculture Department said it can label the food safe to eat.

The U.K. venture capital firm, which focuses on cellular agriculture, said the USDA on Monday granted California-based Upside Foods permission to label its lab-created chicken products safe to eat in the U.S. The American food regulator will next inspect the company's poultry and meat facilities to ensure they meet federal requirements, which Agronomics said is the final regulatory step before commercializing its products.

"Agronomics is confident that these developments will pave the way FDA and USDA approvals for other producers of cultivated meat and proteins, such that a wide variety of products will be available to US consumers in the coming years," the company said.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration deemed the lab-produced chicken safe to eat in 2022.

Write to David Sachs at david.sachs@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 16, 2023 04:36 ET (08:36 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2023 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.