It’s entirely possible that the chicken will fly off the shelves. Even though it contains only 3% animal cells, production can be very limited. Eat Just, which owns Good Meat, has been in deep financial trouble for some time and is under serious pressure to cut costs and demonstrate that it is a profitable business. That on a very small scale, even the slightest curiosity among shoppers would seem like a huge success, even if it actually tells us little about the demand for cultured meat that contains only a tiny fraction of animal cells. there is.
There’s also the issue of price. Good Meat’s chicken sells for S$7.20 ($5.35) for a 120g frozen chicken, which is considerably more expensive than similar cuts sold in Singaporean supermarkets. We already know that high price is one of the biggest deterrents to buying plant-based meat, so if shoppers have a lukewarm attitude about Good Meat chicken, it’s not the product, but the product itself. Some might argue that it’s a matter of price.
Oddly enough, none of this really matters. It’s likely that Singapore shoppers aren’t the real demographic for Good Meat’s chicken. They’re actually players, and they want to hopefully put on a show for the people that really matter right now: investors.
After an initial wave of enthusiasm, cultured meat startups have struggled to raise funding in recent years. The industry raised $226 million in 2023, down from $922 million in 2022, but a bigger drop than the broader industry-wide decline in venture funding. Eat Just, in particular, is embroiled in a huge lawsuit with a former supplier and has been forced to raise new funds to continue operating.
Enthusiasm for the industry has also been dampened by laws in Florida and Alabama banning the sale of cultured meat. The retail launch gives Good Meat a positive story to sell to investors and hopes to spur the infusion of capital needed to continue the industry’s efforts.
Just as the launch of a fine dining restaurant in the U.S. quickly slowed down, it’s important to note that each milestone neatly leads to the next as a retailer grows to one store, then 10, then 20. You shouldn’t expect it. The industry is still in its very early stages. And these experiments aim not only to stir up consumer expectations, but also to capture the attention of investors.
Chicken fillets made from plant-based chicken may not capture the enthusiasm of investors and consumers. Other startups in the space are trying to get around the cost issue by imitating high-end products such as: sushi grade salmon or steak.Australian startup Vow sells cultural goods Quail parfait At a restaurant in Singapore. It is still too early to tell which, if any, of these approaches will be successful.
All of this does not negate cultured meat. But it remains to be seen whether the industry is on track to solve the big hurdles surrounding reducing the cost of brewed animal cells, and whether cultured meat can surprise consumers in ways that plant-based meat cannot. It’s too early to know. We will have to wait a long time to get answers to these questions.
