California-based startups Friends & Family Pet Food Company and Novel Farms are joining forces to develop cultivated meat for cats and dogs, with plans to launch their products in 2025.
Friends & Family, a Berkeley startup focused on alternative pet nutrition, announced its second major collaboration—this time with Oakland’s Novel Farms, which produces cultivated versions of quail, chicken, pork, and mouse meat. The partnership follows an earlier deal with Singapore’s Umami Bioworks to develop cultivated seafood for cats.
The two companies are currently testing different types of cultivated meats to determine the best fit for pets. Their target market is the San Francisco Bay Area. To bring their product to shelves, they are already engaging with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM), which oversees pet food regulation.
A New Approach to Pet Nutrition
“Pet food, like all food, needs innovation,” said Joshua Errett, co-founder and CEO of Friends & Family. “Our partnership-driven, asset-light model has the potential to transform this space.”
Errett founded the company in 2023 alongside COO Jonny Cruz, a seasoned pet industry expert, and Dr. Sarah Dodd, a veterinarian and chief science officer. The startup has developed a proprietary platform that uses freeze-drying technology to help cultivated meat companies bring their ingredients to market efficiently.
“Our model is to work with scientists and bioscience companies creating scalable cultivated ingredients,” said Errett. “We focus on those that are both desirable to pet owners and capable of reaching commercial scale.”
The deal with Novel Farms will see its cultivated ingredients integrated into shelf-ready foods made by Friends & Family. These products will include hybrid meat formulas, mixing cultivated and plant-based ingredients to keep costs reasonable while offering high nutritional value.
Tailoring Nutrition for Every Pet
Errett said the company plans to use a “house-of-brands” strategy, with each product line having its own identity. This approach allows for customized recipes tailored to specific needs, such as food for puppies enriched with calcium and protein.
Michelle Lu, CEO of Novel Farms, said the partnership fits perfectly with their goal to enter the market: “Pet food is a smart and high-impact entry point for cultivated meat.”
Friends & Family is also working closely with the FDA’s CVM to ensure regulatory compliance, a key step for launching in the U.S. “Each time we go through the process, our applications get stronger,” Errett noted.
Overcoming Regulatory and Market Challenges
Despite political pushback in some states—Florida and Alabama have already banned cultivated meat—the FDA and USDA have found such products safe for consumption. Cultivated chicken from Upside Foods and Good Meat has already reached U.S. markets.
While consumer acceptance remains mixed, surveys show nearly half of pet owners are open to feeding cultivated meat to their animals—even more than those willing to eat it themselves.
“Cultivated meat companies need to deliver value to consumers, not just replicate existing products,” Errett emphasized. “That’s why we’re working with bioscience partners to tailor nutrition to what pets actually need.”
Friends & Family plans to release more updates on its cultivated seafood collaboration with Umami Bioworks soon, with both firms aiming for a Q1 2025 launch.
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