Do tobacco plants hold the key to lab-grown meat?

The head of an Israeli startup that has demonstrated a solution that uses the natural properties of tobacco to replace resource-heavy equipment spoke to ELN about the technology.

Amit Yaari, Chief Executive Officer of BioBetter, said: “Our solution is based on the use of tobacco plants as bioreactors. And what I mean by saying using plants as bioreactors is simply introducing into the plant the DNA that is required for the production of proteins that we want to produce.

“And the plants grow by themselves that just require water and sun.”

Dr Yaari said the company repurposes tobacco plants to create the so-called ‘growth factors’ which are necessary for the cellular development of cultivated meat.

Watch the video to listen to the interview.

Image: BioBetter