Milestones
- EPIC production centre opens in EmeryvilleNov 2021Complete.
- FDA completes pre-market consultation16 Nov 2022Complete.
- USDA grant of inspection and label approval21 Jun 2023Complete.
- First sale at Bar CrennJul 2023Complete.
- Rubicon plant in Illinois pausedMissed · Feb 2024Missed.
- Scale-up at the California siteNowCurrent milestone.
Most important updates
- Aug 2024
- 20 Jun 2024
- 15 Sep 2023
- 21 Jun 2023
- 16 Nov 2022
Current obstacles
- Bioreactor scaleFood-grade tanks of tens of thousands of litres are costly and easily contaminated, since no antibiotics are used.
- State bansFlorida, Alabama and other states ban cultivated meat sales, shrinking the market.
Physics limits
- Oxygen barely dissolves in water, capping how dense cells can growWarm culture broth holds only about 7 mg of oxygen per litre. Dense cells use it up in seconds, and stirring or bubbling harder damages them, so each tank tops out far below the cell density of real meat.
- Without blood vessels, thick tissue starves in the middleNutrients and oxygen diffuse only about 0.1–0.2 mm into living tissue. Real meat is fed by capillaries; grown meat thicker than that needs scaffolds or channels, which is why most products are minced or thin.
- Animal cells grow far slower than germsAnimal cells double about once a day; bacteria can double in 20–30 minutes. A single stray microbe can overrun a batch, so everything must stay sterile like a drug plant, which is costly at food scale.
How it works
Grow
Multiply cells in tanks
A small vial of cells is grown in ever-larger bioreactors, doubling about every day or two at set temperature and oxygen.
Differentiate
From cells to tissue
Changes in food and setup push cells to form muscle- and fat-like tissue with a meat texture.
Harvest
Harvest and form
The cell mass is harvested, then shaped and cooked like normal chicken products.
Spec sheet
| Spec | Cultivated chicken |
|---|---|
| EPIC design capacity | ~50,000 lb/yearR (reported) |
| US clearances | FDA (2022) + USDA (2023)R (reported) |
R reported by the company
Papers & demos
- Nov 2022paperFDA pre-market consultation on Upside's cultured chicken cell material (opens fda.gov)First FDA safety review completed for cultivated meat.
Update log
Aug 2024
- Minor: PressRegulatory
Thu 20 Jun 2024
- Minor: PressOther
Feb 2024
- Minor: PressManufacturing
Fri 15 Sep 2023
- Major: PressManufacturing
Wed 21 Jun 2023
- Major: PressRegulatory
Mon 24 Apr 2023
- Minor: PressResearch
Wed 16 Nov 2022
- Major: RegulatorRegulatory
About Upside Foods
Upside Foods
Cultivated chicken, EPIC plant, FDA/USDA cleared
Berkeley pioneer of cultivated meat, founded as Memphis Meats in 2015. It was first to clear both FDA and USDA review for chicken grown from animal cells (2022-23), but has struggled to scale and paused a big Illinois plant in 2024.
- First cultivated meat to get FDA 'no questions' (Nov 2022) and a USDA grant of inspection (June 2023).
- Raised $400M in 2022 at a valuation above $1B, but paused its Rubicon plant in Illinois in 2024.
- Is fighting cultivated-meat bans in Florida and other states in court.
- Founded
- 201511 yrs
- Headquarters
- United States
- Status
- Private
- Valuation
- private
- Raised
- $400M1 round
- Last round
- Series C · $400MApr 2022
- Works in
- AgricultureCultivated meatBiotech
- Coverage
- 1 program · 9 updateslatest 20 Mar 2025checked 25 Sep
- Lead investors
- TemasekAbu Dhabi Growth Fund
- Customers
- Bar Crenn (opens barcrenn.com)
- Investors
- Temasek (opens temasek.com.sg)
- People
- Uma ValetiFounder & CEO