Sejong Univ. unveils Korea's first cultured meat prototype

Sejong University in Seoul, South Korea has unveiled a cultured meat prototype for the first time in the country.

Cultured meat is an alternative protein that is artificially produced by culturing muscle cells in vitro without slaughtering animals. The prototype of cell-based meat was implemented by culturing muscle stem cells extracted from pig skeletal muscle to make muscle tissue similar to conventional meat, according to an announcement by Sejong University in March.

A research team led by Professor Park Sungkwon of the university's food science of biotechnology department began research on the project in 2018 by isolating muscle cells from the skeletal muscle biopsy of animals.

With support from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the research has been conducted together with Seoul National University and Space F, a startup specializing in cultured meat products since last year. 

“We can open up the possibility of securing the fundamental technology for cultured meat production," Professor Park said in a statement. "We are aiming to advance this technology for commercialization through further research and optimization.”

Additionally, his team has also completed the development of cultured beef and will release its prototype in the coming months.

Yeonhee Kim edited this article.