JACA aims to form policy recommendations about cultivated meat
Japan Association for Cellular Agriculture (JACA), a Japan-based non-profit research institute hosted the inaugural meeting in Tokyo to promote and foster the domestic cultivated food industry.
JACA aims to form policy recommendations about cultivated meat, contributing to key issues in Japan such as food security and sustainability.
JACA convened around 150 stakeholders from the Japanese Parliament, government officials from Japan and abroad, industry associations, member companies, and academia to build a consensus on necessary measures on food safety requirements for cultivated food. The consortium also discussed measures to protect Japanese farmers’ rights to branded animal cells such as “Wagyu”; proper usage of the “Wagyu” term in the cellular agriculture field. In addition there was a proposal on food labeling requirements including the definition of “Made in Japan” for cultivated products along with necessary guidelines for transparent consumer communications.
A representative from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry was present, along with representatives of Japan’s Parliamentary Group for Cellular Agriculture and Japanese food majors such as NH Foods Ltd., and Ajinomoto Co., Inc. Following a panel discussion, Maruha Nichiro Corporation represented the seafood industry.
Megumi Avigail Yoshitomi, Representative Director of JACA, said “Japan should leverage its global presence in food and regenerative medicine area to show its presence in the cellular agriculture field”.
The JACA demonstrated cultivated meats, including bio-printed cultivated marbled beef from the Consortium for Future Innovation by Cultured Meat, cultivated chickens from Diverse Farm, and cultivated beef from the Joint Institution for Advanced Biomedical Sciences of Tokyo Women’s Medical University and Waseda University.
