Cost-Effective Culture Medium for Cell-Based Future Foods

Cell-based protein sources are considered promising future food materials due to their nutritional potential and sustainability. However, the process of massive cell proliferation, which involves an expensive culture medium and is time-consuming, slows the development of cell-based future foods. Herein, we report on the development of cost-effective culture media prepared from egg whites, microalgae, and silk extracts. The developed culture media showed cell proliferation efficiency similar to that of the conventional medium group while maintaining the bovine myoblasts in an undifferentiated state. Furthermore, an improved degree of myogenic differentiation was observed in myoblasts proliferating using the developed culture medium. We selected the optimal cell culture medium for food production by deriving the cost-effectiveness of each culture medium for cell growth. This research provides fundamental insights into building sustainable food systems and cellular agriculture.