FACT-CHECK: Claims that Dutch factory is 3D-printing meat using animal stem cells is untrue

Redefine Meat is not 3D-printing meat from animal stem cells

CLAIM

Posts circulated widely on social media since early 2024 claim that a Dutch factory is 3D-printing steaks and other meat products using animal stem cells.

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BACKGROUND

The claim began to spread on Facebook in early January. According to the claim, Israeli company Redefine Meat had begun operating in the Netherlands where its factory was producing 50 tonnes of steaks per week.

Accompanying the post were two photos supposedly showing the 3D-printed meat from Redefine Meat. The post below is the earliest that the ESN was able to find. As of April 18 it has been shared 6,300 times.

Since then the claim has continued to spread. This one from March has so far been shared 744 times.

METHOD

Redefine Meat has indeed set up a factory in the Netherlands where it is 3D-printing meat. The company’s production methods has been featured in several news reports, such as this one from Reuters.

However, on its website’s FAQ section under “Products”, the company clearly states that all its products are “are free from animal-based ingredients, thus suitable for vegans. In fact, we believe that everyone should be able to enjoy new-meat, and they are aimed at omnivores, flexitarians, vegetarians or vegans.”

A reverse image search of the two images used in the posts reveals that the meat in the photos are, in fact, plant-based, and not made from animal stem cells. One of the pictures is from this news report about Redefine Meat (image appears at 01.03.)

The second image used in the posts making the claim was featured in a German news report featuring a Spanish company that 3D-prints a vegan meat substitute. The image can be seen at 01.09 in the video.

From this analysis, we can conclude that while the pictures do show 3D-printed ‘meats’, they are actually plant-based and are not made from animal stem cells.

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RATING

The claim is false. Redefine Meat is not 3D-printing meat from animal stem cells and the two images are misrepresented as both actually show plant-based steaks.

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SOURCES

Facebook.com. (2023). Julie Bovenizer – A factory in Holland, 3D prints 500 tons of… [online] [Accessed 18 Apr. 2024].

‌Facebook.com. (2023). Jim Gilliland – Welcome to the future. A factory in Holland 3D… [online] [Accessed 18 Apr. 2024].

Jobs, C. (2023). FAQ’s | Redefine Meat. [online] Redefine Meat FAQ. [Accessed 18 Apr. 2024].

‌Reuters (2022). More 3D-printed steaks are coming to Europe. YouTube. [Accessed 18 Apr. 2024].

euronews. (2022). Would you eat this 3D printed plant-based steak? [online] [Accessed 18 Apr. 2024].

dw.com. (2022). Vegan steak from a 3D printer. [online] [Accessed 18 Apr. 2024].