Cell-Based Agriculture: Meat, Milk and Eggs Without Animals

In June 2025, the world’s first lab-grown sushi salmon was approved for sale in the United States, and is now being served in restaurants across four American cities. In the EU, too, several companies have applied for approval of lab-grown products. If approved, these would also be eligible for sale in Norway. These are examples of what is known as cell cultivation, which is still largely at the pilot stage. Nevertheless, around 150 companies worldwide are now working on the cultivation of meat and seafood.

Another technology for producing animal proteins is called precision fermentation. This is more advanced, and its products are already sold today to food manufacturers — amongst other things to improve the taste, texture and nutritional value of plant-based foods, and to create animal-free versions of products such as milk and ice cream.

This policy brief explains the technology and what it may mean for society and industry (in Norwegian): 

Several countries are now actively investing in cell-based agriculture as a tool for value creation and sustainability. At the same time, cultivated meat is facing political resistance, and a number of countries have in recent years banned its production and sale in order to protect agriculture, food traditions and local value creation.