Vow (company)
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Cultured meat |
| Founded | 2019[1] |
| Founders | George Peppou, Tim Noakesmith |
| Headquarters | Sydney , Australia |
Area served | Singapore[2] |
Key people | George Peppou, CEO |
| Products | Forged Parfait, a cultured meat product from Japanese Quail DNA[2] |
Number of employees | 65 |
| Website | eatvow |
.jpg)
Vow is an Australian company that grows cultured meat for commercial distribution,[3] and is headquartered in Sydney, Australia.[4]
History
Vow was founded in 2019[1] by George Peppou (CEO) and Tim Noakesmith (CCO).[5][6] In July 2019, Vow demonstrated a kangaroo dumpling, the first non-farmed meat demonstrated using cultured meat technology.[1][7] In August 2020 they demonstrated a further five species in partnership with Australian chef Neil Perry.[8] During 2020, the company was criticised for plans to produce zebra meat.[9]
In August 2021, the company announced they were developing hybrid products containing cultured meat and ingredients produced using precision fermentation technology.[10] The company said that work was being done in the areas of chicken, crocodile, kangaroo and water buffalo meat.[11] During an interview on The Drum in January 2022, the company announced that their first product would be crocodile and would be launching in Singapore.[12]
In November 2022 Vow announced they are launching Morsel, which is cultured Umai Quail.[13] In 2023, it developed a "mammoth meatball" as a publicity stunt, which was put on display at Museum Boerhaave.[14] The meatball was made from portions of lamb, mammoth, and African elephant DNA, piecing together DNA similar to the mammoth genome, then grown in a sheep muscle cell.[14]
Australian and New Zealand regulatory bodies began reviewing Vow's cultured meat products for approval in December 2023.[15] In April 2024, Singapore was the first government to approve the meat for commercial sale.[16] That month, Vow began selling its first commercial product there, Forged Parfait, made with Japanese quail cells.[17][2] On 7 April 2025, Vow quail became the first cultured meat product to be officially approved for sale in Australia and New Zealand.[18] In mid-June 2025, Vow expected to be serving its cultivated quail in restaurants in Sydney and Melbourne "within weeks".[19][20]
Products and operations
Vow develops, manufactures, and markets cultured meat products that are grown in large vats, similar to a brewery[21] in a four-week process.[22] As of June 2025, all of its commercial products are based on cells from a Japanese quail.[23] Vow uses a cell sample from connective tissue in the Japanese quail that contains both fat and protein.[24] The cells feed on a vegetarian broth of vitamins, amino acids, and minerals in a bioreactor.[22][24][25] The cells are moved into larger vats as they multiply, eventually being in a 20,000 liter bioreactor.[24] The cultured meat is then cooked and combined with other ingredients.[24]
Vow focuses on creating new meats, rather than copying mass produced meats like chicken.[26] Vow sells and markets a pâté, a foie gras,[27] an edible tallow candle,[23] and a smoked butter spread.[28][29] The meat cells are mixed with other ingredients. For example, the pâté contains butter, shallots, tapioca starch, wine, garlic, and other spices.[24][26]
As of June 2025, Vow has 35,000 liters of bioreactor capacity.[30] It operates the largest food-producing bioreactor in the world at 20,000 liters, called Andromeda.[23][31] In June 2025, it harvested 2,000 pounds of cultured meat.[25]
References
- ^ a b c Cherney, Mike (2019-08-08). "Lab-Grown Kangaroo Meat: It's What's for Dinner?". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2021-04-19.
- ^ a b c Kan, Ethan (April 4, 2024). "Forged Parfait by Vow made with cultured quail launches in Singapore". Tatler Asia. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
- ^ Watson, Elaine (2024-04-03). "Vow becomes third company to launch cultivated meat, but it isn't starting with chicken nuggets…". AgFunderNews. Retrieved 2024-05-28.
- ^ "Vow". www.vowfood.com. Retrieved 2021-04-19.
- ^ "Our people". www.vowfood.com. Retrieved 2021-04-19.
- ^ "Vow Food: Cultivating a new meat paradigm - Food & Drink Business". www.foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au. Retrieved 2022-01-15.
- ^ Bronner, Stephen J. (24 October 2019). "Lab-grown meat also creates an unexpected benefit: Ethical zebra burgers". Inverse. Retrieved 2022-01-15.
- ^ Waters, Cara (2020-09-01). "Blackbird-backed Vow serves up lab-grown meat with Neil Perry". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2021-04-19.
- ^ "Exotic Lab-Grown Meats Face Boring Reality and Problems". Mirage News. Retrieved 2024-05-28.
- ^ De Lorenzo, Daniela (2021-08-25). "Cell-Cultured Meat Meets Animal-Free Fermented Fat In First-Of-A-Kind Collaboration". Forbes.
- ^ "Next on the Menu: Cellular Agriculture Could "Domesticate" Any Animal on the Planet". www.builtwithbiology.com. Retrieved 2022-01-15.
- ^ The Drum Tuesday January 4, ABC News, 2022-01-04, retrieved 2022-01-15
- ^ "Vow's first cultured meat product close to Singapore unveiling after $49.2M Series A". www.techcrunch.com. 14 November 2022. Retrieved 2022-11-26.
- ^ a b Hunt, Katie (March 28, 2023). "Meatballs made with mammoth DNA created by Australian food startup". CNN. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ^ Reynolds, Matt (February 14, 2024). "The Leading Lab-Grown Meat Company Just Paused a Major Expansion". Wired. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ^ Sofia, Nurin; Wright, Keira (April 4, 2024). "Singapore Gives Woolly Mammoth Meatball Firm Nod for Lab-Grown Quail". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ^ Tan, Cheryl (April 4, 2024). "Singapore approves lab-grown quail for consumption". The Straits Times. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ^ Mridul, Anay (7 April 2025). "Cultured Quail Startup Vow Gets FSANZ Regulatory Approval in Australia & New Zealand". Green Queen. Retrieved 9 July 2025.
- ^ Southey, Flora (June 18, 2025). "Cultivated meat hits the market in Australia". Food Navigator. Retrieved June 27, 2025.
- ^ Mridul, Anay (19 June 2025). "Vow Makes History As First Startup to Serve Cultivated Meat at Australian Restaurants". Green Queen. Retrieved 9 July 2025.
- ^ Fitzsimmons, Caitlin (May 20, 2024). "Vow cultured meat seeks to meet global demand without emissions, land clearing". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ^ a b Kan, Ethan (April 4, 2024). "Forged Parfait by Vow made with cultured quail launches in Singapore". Tatler Asia. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
- ^ a b c Gorman, Alyx (June 18, 2025). "Australia's first lab-grown meat will be on menus within weeks". the Guardian. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
- ^ a b c d e Rothman, Ben Raab and Wilson. "Lab-Grown Meat Goes Upscale With Faux Foie Gras". WSJ. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
- ^ a b "Can Cultivated Meat Succeed? One Company Turns to Quail Foie Gras and Woolly Mammoth Meatballs to Stay in the Game". Sentient. July 8, 2025. Retrieved July 22, 2025.
- ^ a b "What Is Cultured Meat, or Real Meat Grown Without the Animal?". Broadsheet. June 25, 2025. Retrieved July 22, 2025.
- ^ Yun, Jessica; Howe, Frances (June 18, 2025). "Lab-grown meat: Vow becomes first in Australia to be granted approval to sell lab-grown meat products". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
- ^ Anthony, John (June 19, 2025). "Regulator approves Vow Group's lab-grown quail as food in NZ". BusinessDesk. Retrieved July 30, 2025.
- ^ O&apos, Abbie (July 12, 2025). "'Delicious', ethical option or 'Frankenstein' food? Cultured meat has hit Australian menus". SBS News. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
- ^ Mridul, Anay (June 19, 2025). "Vow Makes History As First Startup to Serve Cultivated Meat at Australian Restaurants". Green Queen. Retrieved July 30, 2025.
- ^ Watson, Elaine (April 10, 2025). "The death of cultivated meat has been greatly exaggerated, says report as Vow predicts it will soon be 'unit margin positive'". AgFunderNews. Retrieved July 30, 2025.