This startup is the 1st to make cultivated fish fat in the world—and it just debuted in Japan

ImpacFat makes its first international expansion to Japan, will be establishing a shared laboratory and office in Tokyo

Singaporean biotech startup ImpacFat has officially launched in Japan on Wednesday (Oct 1), marking the company’s first international expansion outside of Singapore.

ImpacFat touts itself as the first in the world to cultivate omega-3-rich fat from fish stem cells, making them free from common contaminants found in wild-caught fish, including mercury, microplastics, and pathogens. The resulting cultivated fat closely resembles natural fish fat, maintaining a semi-solid texture.

According to a press release, this expansion was done in partnership with East Japan Railway Company JR East, where the startup will establish a shared office and laboratory at Link Scholar’s Hub (LiSH) at Takanawa Gateway City in Tokyo, Japan.

With the partnership and key investments from Japanese and Singaporean investors, ImpacFat plans to accelerate innovation in producing more sustainable and healthy ingredients for food, supplements, and cosmetic products. It is also expected to contribute to Japan’s food security goals, sustainable development initiatives and marine biodiversity protection efforts.

“Japan has long been a global leader in food innovation,” said Mandy Hon, CEO and co-founder of ImpacFat. “By establishing our presence in Takanawa Gateway City, we hope to connect science, innovation, and sustainability to create meaningful impact for both Singapore and Japan.”

They say fat equals flavour, and that’s also true for cultivated meats

ImpacFat was first founded in 2019 by Mandy Hon and Dr. Shigeki Sugii, as a spin-off of the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology at Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), with the former previously holding director positions in multiple international F&B brands.

In a previous interview with Vulcan Post, Mandy shared that many cultivated meat startups raced to create cultivated meat that could eventually replace traditional sources of protein, yet most overlooked a crucial component: fats.

“Nobody’s working on it. Nobody even wants to talk about [fat] because there is some sort of social stigma surrounding the word, but it’s such an important ingredient—we cannot have zero fat in our diets,” she pointed out.

All of their cultivated fat is sustainably sourced from a variety of fish species worldwide, as Mandy notes that the additional fat is added to other lab-grown meats, providing them with more texture and mouthfeel. As interesting as it sounds, doubt remains whether the product will successfully launch in the market.

In recent years, many cultivated meat startups have struggled to scale due to high production costs, resulting in investors withdrawing funds amid a declining market. ImpacFat utilises cell-based technology, which necessitates the procurement of biomedical-grade products, typically at a higher cost.

To lower costs, the startup has begun making its components in-house, but that requires time and patience—something that not all investors possess. Mandy acknowledges these concerns, and the company has diversified its revenue streams to cosmetics and supplements.

With this expansion into Japan, ImpacFat gains access to greater and strategic industrial expertise and commercialisation networks to spur the startup’s progress toward launching in the global market eventually.

Perhaps the day that we see even more lab-grown meat innovations hit commercial shelves isn’t that far away after all.

Featured Image Credit: ImpacFat