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Open Access Publications from the University of California

Scholarly Works (3 results)

  • Thesis
  • Peer Reviewed
UC Davis Electronic Theses and Dissertations (2023)

Investment in animal cell-based meat (ACBM) or cultured meat has been increasing at a rapid pace with the total investment being greater than 2 billion USD by 2021. When the investment in ACBM initially occurred ACBM had not been economically vetted. This dissertation contains the first publicly available technoeconomic assessment of ACBM. This assessment was conducted utilizing cellular metabolic requirements and chemical/process engineering conventions. Findings of the first TEA ACBM indicate that nearly all technical hurdles would need to be resolved before economic viability could be achieved. Shortly after publication of the first TEA of ACBM, two other TEAs of ACBM were published and all three were normalized and critically examined for this dissertation. This critical examination is contained within this dissertation to provide readers with a comparison of the methods and assumptions contained within each ACBM TEA. An additional TEA was conducted for an economically viable protein alternative, mycoprotein to validate methods which were utilized in the initial TEA of ACBM. Findings of the mycoprotein TEA indicate that the utilized method provided reasonable estimates for the cost of food produced in bioreactors. The initial ACBM TEA indicated that a substantial quantity of animal cell growth medium may be necessary to produce ACBM at an industrial scale. To understand the potential environmental impact of ACBM production, quantification of the embedded resources contained within the animal growth medium was deemed necessary. Essential 8TM (E8) is a stem cell growth medium that had been suggested as a suitable growth medium for ACBM with some modification. A cradle-to-production gate life cycle assessment (LCA) was conducted for E8. The embedded resources were quantified for each E8 component (when possible) and the environmental impact of a liter of E8 was calculated. Utilizing data obtained from the analyzed TEAs and E8 LCA, a LCA of near-term ACBM was conducted. The LCA of ACBM indicated that the environmental impact of near-term ACBM was likely greater than commercially produced beef potentially by orders of magnitude.

    Cover page: A sustainability analysis of near-term animal cell-based meat
    • Article
    • Peer Reviewed
    UC Davis Previously Published Works (2020)
    Pinene is a secondary plant metabolite that has functional properties as a flavor additive as well as potential cognitive health benefits. Although pinene is present in low concentrations in several plants, it is possible to engineer microorganisms to produce pinene. However, feedstock cost is currently limiting the industrial scale-up of microbial pinene production. One potential solution is to leverage waste streams such as whey permeate as an alternative to expensive feedstocks. Whey permeate is a sterile-filtered dairy effluent that contains 4.5% weight/weight lactose, and it must be processed or disposed of due its high biochemical oxygen demand, often at significant cost to the producer. Approximately 180 million m3 of whey is produced annually in the U.S., and only half of this quantity receives additional processing for the recovery of lactose. Given that organisms such as recombinant Escherichia coli grow on untreated whey permeate, there is an opportunity for dairy producers to microbially produce pinene and reduce the biological oxygen demand of whey permeate via microbial lactose consumption. The process would convert a waste stream into a valuable coproduct. This review examines the current approaches for microbial pinene production, and the suitability of whey permeate as a medium for microbial pinene production.
      Cover page: The Potential Production of the Bioactive Compound Pinene Using Whey Permeate
      • Article
      • Peer Reviewed
      UC Davis Previously Published Works (2021)
      Interest in animal cell-based meat (ACBM) or laboratory-grown meat has been increasing; however, the economic viability of these potential products has not been thoroughly vetted. Recent studies suggest monoclonal antibody production technology can be adapted for the industrialization of ACBM production. This study provides a scenario-based assessment of the projected cost per kilogram of ACBM produced in the United States based on cellular metabolic requirements and process/chemical engineering conventions. A sensitivity analysis of the model identified the nine most influential cost factors for ACBM production out of 67 initial parameters. The results indicate that technological performance will need to approach technical limits for ACBM to achieve profitably as a commodity. However, the model also suggests that low-volume high-value specialty products could be viable based on current technology.
        Cover page: Preliminary Techno-Economic Assessment of Animal Cell-Based Meat
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