Recreating the rich, irregular fat patterns seen in high-quality beef is one of the hardest parts of making whole cuts in cultivated meat. Fat is not just flavor. It affects how a steak browns, how it releases juices, and how it feels when you chew it. A new patent from Gourmey (previously SUPREME) suggests a practical path toward achieving that complexity without growing full adipose tissue structures, and it could help bridge the gap between today’s prototypes and tomorrow’s commercial products.
Injecting Fat Like a Butcher, Only With Cultivated Cells
The core idea in this patent (WO2025219611A1) is surprisingly intuitive. Instead of printing fat channels or engineering a fully developed fat layer, Gourmey builds a block of aligned protein threads made from cultivated animal cells, then injects a liquid fatty matrix directly into it. The key mechanism is in-situ gelation. As the fatty matrix meets salts already embedded in the protein threads, it turns into a soft gel on the spot. This locks the fat in place, creating marbling that stays put during cooking. The size of the needle (between 0.2 up to 10mm inner-diameter) and the injection density determines how rich or lean the final pattern looks. The result is a raw, whole-cut analogue that behaves more like conventional meat when pan-seared, including controlled fat release and a more familiar chew.
Why This Fits Gourmey’s Bigger Play
Gourmey, formerly SUPREME, has built its identity around creating refined, structured, cultivated poultry with a focus on chef-ready performance. Their R&D leans toward processes that integrate with existing food-manufacturing tools rather than relying on complex tissue engineering. An injection-based approach to marbling fits that philosophy well. And with Gourmey now part of PARIMA, following its merger with Vital Meat, this kind of manufacturable, scalable structuring method aligns with the group’s push toward industrial cultivated poultry products.
The Inventors
Congratulations to the inventors, Victor Conversa Martinez and Phuong Anh Dang, for their contribution to the field.
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About the Author - Kandice Vincent
This article is authored by writer and editor Kandice Vincent, whose work centers on cellular agriculture, food technology, and the future of sustainable food systems. She partners with founders, researchers, and mission-driven companies to communicate emerging innovations with clarity and accessibility. Kandice is passionate about collaborating with others in the field and helping expand public understanding of the technologies shaping the future of food.
This post is based on publicly available information. Lab Grown Technologies is not affiliated with the inventors or organizations mentioned.