Umami Bioworks is launching operations in the UK, with the hope of tackling the nation’s overfishing crisis.

Starting with white fish, Umami will work alongside University College London and Imperial College to develop and advance the commercialisation of its cultured seafood products.

The launch of Umami’s UK operations comes as overfishing, sustainability issues and dwindling fish stocks threaten the nation’s seafood industry. The start-up's cultivated-seafood technology offers the UK’s seafood industry a lifeline for a sustainable future.

The UK relies on imports for 70% of its seafood, which, combined with its declining local seafood industry, overfishing and post-Brexit regulatory issues, has pushed the nation’s seafood imports to a tipping point.

The news comes after the UK government’s announcement yesterday (8 October), that it will create Europe’s first cultivated meat regulatory sandbox to improve the Food Standards Agency’s scientific knowledge about the novel food.

Mihir Pershad, CEO of Umami Bioworks, said: “Our decision to enter the UK market aligns with the country’s strong focus on food security and its world-renowned expertise in biotech and bioengineering. We will work closely with leading institutions such as UCL and Imperial College to advance commercialisation of our current generation of cultivated seafood solutions and to pave the way for the next generation of cultivated seafood breakthroughs that will inevitably redefine how the UK – and the world – feeds itself.”

Pershad added: “Umami Bioworks is committed to collaborating with UK stakeholders, ensuring that cultivated seafood complements, rather than disrupts, existing farming industries. The UK government’s ongoing support for cultivated meat technology and a favourable regulatory environment provide fertile ground for Umami’s success.”

The UK has seen a number of advances in the cultivated meat and seafood market over the past few months. Notably, in July, British pet food start-up Meatly received regulatory clearance to sell its cultivated pet food in the UK – marking the first time cell-based meat has been approved in Europe.

It's been a busy year for Umami. Last week, it announced a new partnership with South Korean biotech firm KCell Biosciences and bioprocess solutions provider WSG, to establish a scalable, sustainable domestic production pipeline for cultivated seafood in South Korea. In August, it unveiled plans to merge with Shiok Meats to establish a global powerhouse in the growing market for sustainable seafood alternatives. July saw the cultivated seafood giant partner with Friends & Family Pet Food Co to co-develop and launch the ‘world’s first’ cat treats made from cultivated fish, and the same month, it collaborated with two Indian firms in a bid to boost R&D and reach commercial-scale production.

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