Czech cultivated‑meat company Bene Meat, together with Ghent University, has published in Frontiers in Veterinary Science the first peer‑reviewed feline feeding trial assessing the acceptance and digestibility of cultivated meat in domestic cats. The double‑blinded, cross‑over study compared a complete diet containing 24.4% cultivated hamster cell biomass with a control diet formulated using food‑grade chicken breast.
According to the study, nine out of ten cats showed optimal acceptance of the cultivated diet. Notably, leftovers were significantly lower for the cultivated formulation, despite the control diet containing a much higher level of palatant (10 g/kg vs. 1.5 g/kg). As stated in the article: “Leftovers were significantly lower for the test diet (2.4 ± 3.3% vs. 8.5 ± 7.8%; p = 0.025).” This suggests that the cultivated biomass was at least as palatable as the conventional meat reference.
Digestibility outcomes were also comparable between diets, with similar values for crude fat, nitrogen‑free extract, metabolizable energy and dry matter. The authors conclude that the cultivated biomass was adequately digestible and well tolerated, with stable body condition, normal fecal consistency and no persistent clinical signs during the 17‑day feeding period.
These findings reinforce the potential of cultivated meat as a novel, sustainable protein source for feline nutrition. The authors highlight that this ingredient was incorporated into a complete and balanced diet meeting FEDIAF guidelines, and that its nutritional profile closely matched that of the conventional control.
Further research is recommended to explore long‑term health outcomes and to deepen understanding of palatability drivers, digestibility mechanisms and formulation strategies for cultivated proteins in pet food.
Link to the article: Frontiers | Can cultivated hamster cells compete with chicken meat? Insights on acceptance and digestibility in domestic cats
