Promoting High-Quality Development of the Industrial Chain: Venture Capital Record | Zhou Zi Future: Creator of China's First Cell-Cultured Meat

Is it true that you can eat pork without raising pigs?

　　A decade of honing a sword to break foreign monopolies

In 1931, former British Prime Minister Churchill mentioned in "Fifty Years Hence": "We should not raise a whole chicken just to eat chicken breast or wings, but should cultivate these tissues separately in suitable culture media." This was the first time the concept of cultured meat was proposed in the world.

More than 80 years later, Churchill's vision has gradually become a reality. In 2013, Professor Mark Post developed the first edible cultured meat in the Netherlands. At that time, China was still in the early stages of research.

Fortunately, with the efforts of Chinese scientists honing their skills for a decade, they finally broke the foreign technological barriers. In 2009, Professor Zhou Guanghong, a leader in meat processing academia in China and an academician of the International Academy of Food Science, led a team to start research on cell-cultured meat. On November 18, 2019, the team cultivated China's first piece of cell-cultured meat, breaking the foreign monopoly on cultured meat production technology. Based on this achievement, the team established Nanjing Zhouzi Future Food Technology Co., Ltd. (referred to as "Zhouzi Future").

Dr. Ding Shijie, co-founder and CEO of Zhouzi Future, is a core member of the research and development team and also the first PhD in the global field of cell-cultured meat, having studied under Mark Post, the first person in international cell-cultured meat, and Professor Zhou Guanghong, the first person in China's cell-cultured meat.

China's first cell-cultured meat

"As the creator of China's first cell-cultured meat, Zhouzi Future continuously tackles technical challenges and remains at the forefront in China. The advancement of cell-cultured meat technology is of great significance for ensuring food security in our country in the future," said Dr. Ding Shijie.

The first tasting ceremony of cell-cultured meat in China - Dr. Ding Shijie is shown tasting.

　　Establishing a new type of meat production method, more environmentally friendly and healthier.

Zhouzi Future breaking foreign monopolies not only helps ensure national food security but is also more environmentally friendly.

In recent years, China's meat consumption has grown rapidly, but per capita meat consumption is currently at a medium level globally, about 70% of that of developed countries, leaving significant room for future growth.

As meat consumption increases, environmental pressure also rises, and the contradiction between obtaining meat through traditional animal husbandry and sustainable development is becoming increasingly prominent. Traditional farming methods impose tremendous environmental pressure on the Earth in terms of freshwater resource usage, land use, and greenhouse gas emissions, while also being detrimental to animal welfare and involving issues of antibiotic abuse.

How can this contradiction be resolved or alleviated?

Cell-cultured meat refers to meat produced from livestock stem cells cultured in vitro, which does not require animal husbandry and is directly cultivated from cells. The technology for cell-cultured meat is a disruptive future food production technology that has emerged in recent years.

According to estimates, compared to traditional meat production methods, cell-cultured meat can reduce energy consumption by 7% to 45%, lower greenhouse gas emissions by 78% to 96%, decrease land use by 99%, and reduce water usage by 82% to 96%.

The traditional meat production cycle lasts up to 9 months, while cell-cultured meat only takes about 3 weeks, and the entire process is industrialized, allowing for controllable meat quality. The production process undergoes multiple safety inspections, reducing environmental pollution and issues like animal epidemics faced by traditional animal husbandry. Additionally, traditional meat production may involve the extensive use of antibiotics on animals, while cell-cultured meat can mitigate such problems, ensuring the safety and health of the meat.

In addition to being more environmentally friendly and healthier, the production of cell-cultured meat only requires extracting a small number of cells from animals, which are then industrially produced in factories, thereby reducing animal stocking density and slaughter, benefiting animal welfare.

　　Capital enters the scene, accelerating industrialization.

Compared to traditional meat, cell-cultured meat is expected to improve the current meat production system, showcasing advantages in reducing zoonotic disease outbreaks, enhancing food safety, alleviating future food resource shortages, and maintaining animal welfare, thus aiding our country in achieving carbon peak and carbon neutrality.

Whether in the research field or the industrial market, cell-cultured meat has become a current hotspot. European and American countries have launched relevant strategic deployments to vigorously promote the development of cell-cultured meat.

Our country has also clearly supported agricultural modernization at the policy level, especially the modernization of agricultural technology. Earlier this year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs issued the "14th Five-Year Plan for National Agricultural and Rural Science and Technology Development," which pointed out that during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, it will further strengthen agricultural and rural technological innovation, focusing on developing future food manufacturing, including "cell-cultured meat" in frontier and interdisciplinary technologies.

In this case, how can cell-cultured meat quickly transition from the "laboratory" to the "market" and become a delicacy on the dining table? The support of capital is indispensable.

In December 2019, Zhouzi Future was established in Nanjing, and a year later, it received angel round financing. In October 2021, Zhouzi Future completed Series A financing, raising a total of 70 million yuan, with investors including Nanjing Innovation Investment Group.

Yan Peng'an, investment director of Nanjing Innovation Investment Group, stated: "Zhouzi Future is one of the earliest teams in the country to research cell meat, with a strong academic leading position and first-mover advantage. The team has established a set of in vitro production methods for cell-cultured meat, providing important technical support for the research and development of cell-cultured meat in our country. Compared to animal meat, cell-cultured meat has irreplaceable advantages in food safety, public health, and energy conservation and environmental protection, representing the development direction of future food. We believe Zhouzi Future will grow rapidly and lead the innovative development of China's alternative protein industry."

"With the support and introduction of Nanjing Innovation Investment Group, relevant companies in the upstream and downstream industries have interacted with each other, supporting resources mutually and establishing a friendly partnership. At the same time, Nanjing Innovation Investment Group has also brought us valuable financial support and strong credibility endorsement, which are all driving forces for our progress. The company is very honored to partner with Nanjing Innovation Investment Group, and we believe we will adhere to the principle of win-win cooperation to jointly promote the development of future food and contribute to achieving the 'two centenary goals'!" said Dr. Ding Shijie.

Currently, Zhouzi Future has made key breakthroughs in high-purity seed cell extraction and maintenance, low-cost serum-free culture medium production, cell suspension amplification production, and product development. The company has applied for multiple patents and continues to focus on research and development. This year, the company will focus on the construction of small-scale and pilot production lines, aiming to achieve product launch within two years.