Checkmeat: A review on the applicability of conventional meat authentication techniques to cultured meat

The cultivated meat industry is continuously evolving due to the collective efforts of cultured meat companies and academics worldwide. Though still technologically limited, recent reports of regulatory approvals for cultured meat companies have initiated the standards-based approach towards cultured meat production. Incidents of deception in the meat industry call for fool-proof authentication methods to ensure consumer safety, product quality, and traceability. The cultured meat industry is not exempt from the threats of food fraud. Meat authentication techniques based on DNA, protein, and metabolite fingerprints of animal meat species needs to be evaluated for their applicability to cultivated meat. Technique-based categorization of cultivated meat products could ease the identification of appropriate authentication methods. The combination of methods with high sensitivity and specificity is key to increasing the accuracy and precision of meat authentication. The identification of markers (both physical to biochemical) to differentiate conventional meat from cultivated meat needs to be established to ensure overall product traceability. The current review briefly discusses some areas in the cultured meat industry that are vulnerable to food fraud. Specifically, it targets the current meat and meat product authentication tests to emphasize the need for ensuring the traceability of cultured meat.