China's Cultivated Meat Ambition Meets Consumer Skepticism

A government-backed laboratory in Beijing is working to develop cultivated meat, aiming for a product as tasty and affordable as conventional meat. This effort is part of a national strategy to address food security, as China consumes nearly a third of the world's meat and is its largest meat importer.

Mirte Gosker, CEO of the Good Food Institute APAC, states, "One cannot overstate the significance of Asia’s largest economy putting cultivated meat and other novel ingredients at the centre of its national food strategy." A recent policy document calls for building a diversified food supply system and exploring novel food resources.

China's Potential to Lead a Bio-Based Industry

A report from April suggests China could become the world's leading supplier of cultivated meat technology by 2050. In this scenario, lab-grown meat might eventually constitute about half of China's domestic protein consumption. The report's authors, Systemiq, say this transition would lower global fermentation infrastructure costs and introduce new competition.

However, creating consumer demand is a separate challenge. A survey in four major Chinese cities found 77% of consumers were willing to try cell-cultured foods, though only 10% were aware of them. Willingness to try does not guarantee long-term adoption, a lesson learned from the struggles of plant-based proteins.

The Struggle of Western Alternative Proteins in China

Several Western alternative protein brands have attempted to enter the Chinese market but have largely withdrawn. Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods have exited, and Oatly is reportedly considering selling its Chinese business after years of difficulty.

According to Cathy Gu, a China expansion specialist at Tractus, these brands failed by not tailoring products to local cuisines. They often launched burgers and sausages for restaurants instead of items suited to typical Chinese home cooking. "We have a lot of interest because they’re quite new," Gu says. "But after we taste it, the interest has faded away and we go back to our normal foods."

Surveys show high trial rates but weak sustained interest. While 41% of Asian consumers have tried plant-based proteins, more consumers in the Asia-Pacific region intend to increase their consumption of conventional animal protein than to decrease it.

A Regional Graveyard for Alternative Protein Companies

The rejection is not limited to Western firms. Asian startups have also struggled, even in Singapore, once hailed as a global hub for cultivated meat. Companies like Avant Proteins have wound down local operations, Shiok Meats merged with another firm, and Eat Just paused its cultivated meat production in the country.

"It’s a graveyard of companies out there," says James Meisenheimer, an agri-foods consultant at Tractus, citing numerous bankruptcies across China, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. In response to high costs and weak demand, Singapore has removed alternative proteins from its national food strategy, focusing instead on research and development.

The Investment Gap and Shifting Hubs

Public investment in alternative proteins globally peaked in 2022 but has since declined. The figures from the Good Food Institute's tracker show a significant shortfall from the estimated need.

A 2021 UK study estimated that $10 billion per year in government funding is needed for the sector to mature. Based on 2025 figures, current investment is less than 5% of that benchmark. China has allocated $1 billion for new biotechnologies, but it is unclear how much will go to alternative proteins; the Beijing lab received about $11 million.

Meanwhile, government support has helped South Korea overtake Singapore as the Asia-Pacific's largest startup and manufacturing centre for alternative proteins. Initiatives include a $21 million investment from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries for plant-based and cultivated seafood research. If China decides to fully back the sector, its scale could dwarf efforts elsewhere in Asia.