Cultured meat is considered by many to be the future of the food industry - a future that, eventually, is expected to replace unsustainable animal-based food that harms animal welfare and contributes to the climate crisis and environmental pollution.
However, despite significant progress in the food tech field in recent years, it is still a product that is not widespread and certainly not accessible at prices affordable to the general public.
The challenge is not rooted in carnivores’ preference for “real” beef, lamb, poultry, or fish, nor in taste - but mainly in the fact that the production costs of lab-grown cultured food remain very high.
Now, it seems, a change may be underway: A new technology, recently unveiled at the international Sea The Future 2026 conference on food security in aquaculture, promises to dramatically reduce production costs. The conference was organized by the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry and the Negev, the Galilee, and National Resilience Ministry.
The technology is based on an edible hydrogel growth scaffold, which serves as a biotechnological platform for cultivating living animal and plant cells for food production - a kind of “creation out of nothing.”
According to the developers, the platform reduces production costs by tens of percent, and in advanced stages of development, has achieved a reduction of about 80% compared to competing cultivation methods.
Behind the development is the Israeli startup NUNA, which aims to make cultured animal and plant-based food accessible to millions of consumers worldwide. The technology was developed at Bar-Ilan University, in collaboration with Prof. Shlomo Margel, a nanotechnology expert; Prof. Sheenan Harpaz, a specialist in aquaculture and animal nutrition; and Dr. Yaron Yehoshua, a biotechnology and algae expert.
The company’s approach improves the stability of the cultivation process, reduces dependence on heavy infrastructure, and allows better alignment between the biological needs of the cells and the production environment.
So far, the technology has been proven in plants - with several strains of microalgae - and in animals, using fish cells. The company is working to expand the platform’s applications to high-value plant cells and animal cells, including applications such as saffron, vanilla, and truffles, as well as chicken, beef, and fish cells.
Additionally, water-based cell protein production reduces reliance on fishing and direct use of natural ecosystems, thereby helping to alleviate pressure on increasingly scarce resources, while creating sustainable alternatives for the existing food market.
Another significant advantage is the environmental aspect: In some cases, the growth scaffold is not just a production tool but part of the final product itself - and is edible. This benefit simplifies the production chain, reduces waste and processing steps, and supports large-scale food production with consistent quality.
The technology allows cells to be grown in a controlled environment without the need to raise or slaughter animals, offering an additional protein source that can integrate into the global food system, reduce harm to animals, and enable food production even in regions where food security is currently limited.
Yuval Lipkin, Head of the Food Security Administration at the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry, said: “The impressive and groundbreaking research and developments presented this year at the conference illustrate how ongoing investment in research and development translates directly into strengthening food security. The combination of research, aquaculture, and advanced technologies allows Israel to lead innovative solutions to the challenges of food supply in light of the climate crisis and population growth.”