UMAMI Bioworks, a cultivated seafood platform provider, and Steakholder Foods have collaborated to establish the feasibility of producing 3D-printed cultivated fish products at scalable volumes and bring commercial-ready seafood products to market.

The two-year R&D collaboration was funded by the Singapore-Israel Industrial R&D (SIIRD) grant. It laid the groundwork for producing cultivated fish fillets using 3D printing technology. Through this partnership, the companies have created a portfolio of prototype designs, demonstrating the versatility of 3D printing and cell cultivation in producing a range of fish products.

“Partnering with UMAMI Bioworks allows us to further extend our longstanding expertise in 3D printing of plant-based seafood to the production of cultivated products,” says Steakholder Foods CEO Arik Kaufman. “By leveraging our collective strengths, we aim to quickly develop commercial products that meet industry needs while aligning with regulatory and sustainability goals.”

As part of their strategic efforts, UMAMI Bioworks and Steakholder Foods will also partner with Singapore’s National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Cluster (NAMIC), a national platform hosted by the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), to focus on translating recent R&D efforts into seafood products ready for commercialization in Singapore and beyond.

“Our partnership with Steakholder Foods is well aligned with our strategy to create a sustainable seafood platform with the scalability required for global impact,” says Mihir Pershad, CEO of UMAMI Bioworks. “Through this collaboration, we are integrating cutting-edge 3D-printing technology into our cultivated seafood production platform to meet the growing demand for ethical, high-quality alternatives without compromising marine biodiversity.”

With the support of NAMIC, the companies aim to develop and refine 3D-printed fish fillets, targeting both local and international markets. The partnership also sets the stage for navigating emerging food safety standards and regulatory frameworks.

“This collaboration comes at a pivotal moment as Singapore’s aims to achieve food resilience as part of Singapore’s 30 by 30 goal,” says NAMIC CEO Ho Chaw Sing. “With the aquaculture sector contributing significantly to this goal, we hope to bolster the cellular agriculture industry as an alternative to the agri-food industry by leveraging on Steakholder Foods’ proprietary 3D printing technology and Umami Bioworks’ cultivated bioproduct expertise to accelerate the development of alternative seafood products, with comparable taste and texture to natural seafood.”