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Cell-cultivated products
England and Wales specific
Guidance for businesses on cell-cultivated products and the authorisation process.
What is a cell-cultivated product?
Cell-cultivated products cover a variety of foods that can be made using a production process without slaughter or traditional farming and agricultural practices. Cells isolated from animals or plants, including cells from meat, seafood, fat and offal, or eggs, are grown in a controlled environment, and then harvested to make a final food product.
FSA Explains
Are cell-cultivated products the same as lab-grown meat?
Cell-cultivated products produced from animal cells are sometimes referred to as lab-grown meat (other names include cultured, cultivated, cell-cultured or cell-based). According to the definition of meat and products of animal origin included in Annex 1 of assimilated Regulation (EU) 853/2004, however, cell-cultivated products are not defined as meat. Instead, they are considered to be products of animal origin.
Cell-cultivated products status in Great Britain (GB)
Cell-cultivated products must be authorised before they can be placed on the market in GB. This is to ensure they have been through a rigorous and independent safety assessment. Because of the variety of products and complex production techniques involved, different regulations may apply to the process of their authorisation. They will also need to comply with all the regulations applicable to all food on the market, such as hygiene rules or general food law.
Northern Ireland
In Northern Ireland, novel foods and processes, including cell-cultivated products, must undergo a safety assessment and authorisation before being placed on the market. Businesses seeking to place their products on the NI market should follow EU rules and the European Commission’s authorisation process. For guidance on starting this process, visit Novel food applications: regulations and guidance page on the EFSA website.
Under Windsor Framework arrangements, regulated products (including cell cultivated products) authorised in GB may be placed on the Northern Ireland market if eligible for, and moved through, the Northern Ireland Retail Movement Scheme (NIRMS).
Applying for authorisation
To place your cell-cultivated product on the GB market you must apply for authorisation using our regulated product application service. You must ensure that you choose the correct regulatory route for the assessment of your product.
Considering the methods that are used to create cell-cultivated products , we anticipate that most applications will be assessed under the novel food regulations. Novel food regulations apply to foods with no history of consumption in the United Kingdom (UK) or the European Union (EU) before 15 May 1997.
In some cases, applications may be assessed under the Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) regulations. If genetic modification has taken place during the process, please contact us to discuss your application.
Applying for authorisation under the novel food regulations
Applications for authorisation of cell-cultivated products are required for products considered a novel food under novel food regulations (assimilated Regulation (EU) 2015/2283).
Read our Novel foods authorisation guidance to find out how to apply for authorisation of your product as a novel food.
You can check the products already authorised for the use in Great Britain in our register of novel food authorisations.
Applying for authorisation under the genetic modification regulations
GMO regulations specifically apply to the modification of an organism's genetic material (DNA) in a way that does not occur naturally by mating and/or natural recombination. These regulations are designed to ensure the food is safe for human consumption.
Read our Genetically modified organisms authorisation guidance to find out how to apply for authorisation of your product as a GM food.
You can check the list of GMOs authorised for import and use in food and feed in GB in our register of authorised GMOs.
Data protection
You may request that any confidential data supporting your application is not used without your permission by other businesses for five years from the date of authorisation.
Product safety
All regulated products, no matter which regulations they fall under, undergo rigorous safety assessments.
All food businesses must comply with food safety law. With some exceptions, it applies to all stages of production, processing, and distribution of food and feed.
To place safe food on the market you must:
- ensure traceability of food
- present food appropriately
- provide suitable food information
- withdraw or recall unsafe food
- ensure food and feed imported into, and exported from, GB comply with food law
You can find more information in our Managing food safety guide.
Labelling
You must provide certain information with food products placed on the market to comply with the labelling rules. This includes products’ ingredients, including allergens, and their durability (a use-by or a best-before date). You can find specific labelling requirements in our Packaging and labelling guidance.
We reserve the right under Article 9 of the novel food regulations to require additional specific labelling requirements if we consider it to be in the consumers’ best interests.
If a product is assessed under the GMO regime, it will be labelled as ‘genetically modified’.
Research on cell-cultivated products
We set high standards of food safety. Our research demonstrates our commitment to identifying how best to regulate new and innovative food production methods.
In March 2023, the FSA and FSS commissioned a report to identify the hazards associated with cell-cultivated products production processes. The purpose was to inform our risk assessment process for authorising these products.
This report is a synthesis of desk research, based on thorough review of the academic and non-academic literature and of the alternative proteins start-up scene. It presents an analysis of the emerging market for alternative proteins, the potential implications and the potential policy responses that the FSA might need to consider.
An evidence review was also undertaken in 2025 to examine consumer responses to cell-cultivated products (meat, seafood, dairy and plants)
A 2025 report on best practice for cell banking techniques used in cell-cultivated products
A 2025 report regarding microbial safety issues in meat and how these apply to cell-cultivated products
FAO and WHO report
In April 2023, the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) released a report which compiles and evaluates all evidence to date on food safety in cell-cultivated products.
Novel food tasting trials
Tasting trials of unauthorised novel foods may be permitted if the intention behind them is to conduct research to develop the novel food. The FSA recommends, as best practice, that taste trials are guided by advice published by the Advisory Committee on Novel Foods and Processes (ACNFP). Companies may communicate the fact they have conducted a taste trial through media activity where such publicity is ancillary to the main purpose of the trial as research and development.
If the intention of a tasting trial is to publicise a product or a company brand, then the tasting may amount to the unlawful placing on the market of an unauthorised novel food.
If you conduct a taste trial in the UK, you should refer to the recently updated novel food taste trial guidance to ensure the trial does not amount to an unlawful placing on the market of an unauthorised novel food.
Cell-Cultivated Products Sandbox Programme
The Food Standards Agency (FSA), alongside FSS, have been awarded £1.6 million by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology to better understand how cell-cultivated products are made and make an informed assessment of their safety. This research is part of a bigger programme sometimes referred to as a ‘regulatory sandbox’. The sandbox is a dialogue programme where the FSA and FSS will work with industry, academic bodies, and other experts to gather knowledge about these products to inform our regulatory approach. This programme began in February 2025 and will run until February 2027.
We will explore the risks and hazards, how they can be managed, and what tests companies need to carry out to ensure their safety. We will also use this knowledge to decide how existing legislation applies to these innovative products. Insight from industry will be an important part of this process, helping us understand practical realities and technical approaches. Alongside this, we will draw on other sources of evidence such as scientific research, regulatory expertise and consumer perspectives. We will use the learning from all these sources to produce clear guidance for companies wishing to sell these new foods in Great Britain about how to produce safe food, what data to include in their applications to the FSA and FSS, and how existing food regulation will apply to these products.
Eight companies developing cell-cultivated products, three academic organisations and two industry bodies have been selected to take part in the sandbox. They are:
Companies:
- BlueNalu
- Gourmey
- Hoxton Farms
- Mosa Meat
- Roslin Technologies
- Uncommon Bio
- Vital Meat
- Vow
Academic organisations:
- National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre (NAPIC)
- Cellular Agriculture Manufacturing Hub (CARMA)
- Bezos Centre for Sustainable Protein at Imperial
Industry bodies:
- Alternative Proteins Association (APA)
- Good Food Institute (GFI)
Workshop summaries
As part of the Cell-Cultivated Products (CCP) Sandbox programme, we are running monthly workshops with industry participants, each one covering a certain area of production. Workshop summaries highlighting the key topics, challenges, and opportunities discussed during each session are published regularly. In conjunction with GFI Europe, we will be hosting regular webinars to share learnings from the programme with wider industry.
Business Support Service
As part of the sandbox programme, we have launched a cell-cultivated products Business Support Service that is designed to support companies wishing to submit applications for cell-cultivated products to the GB market authorisation service. It supports the applicant throughout the life of the application, offering both pre- and post-submission support.
Getting help
This advice is for guidance purposes and is not definitive.
If you have any questions on the application process, please contact the Regulated Products Team: regulatedproducts@food.gov.uk
If you have any questions on CCPs more generally, please contact the CCP Sandbox team ccpsandbox@food.gov.uk
Disclaimer
This web page is intended for information purposes only. It does not guarantee your product will be assessed under a particular regulatory route. We reserve the right to make that decision. Please contact us for further advice.
Revision log
Published: 10 November 2023
Last updated: 24 October 2025