SeaWith signs US$14.7 million investment agreement for cultivated beef expansion

South Korean cultivated meat company SeaWith has signed an agreement with Gyeongsangbuk-do province and Uiseong County covering a planned ₩20 billion (US$14.7 million) investment in production facilities, with commercial manufacturing dependent on regulatory approval.

• SeaWith plans a ₩20 billion production investment through 2030.
• A 6,000-liter facility is targeted for 2027.
• Commercial manufacturing will follow regulatory approval.

The memorandum of understanding was signed on November 6 at Uiseong Biofood Valley, where SeaWith intends to develop facilities within the Food Tech Research Support Center and designated industrial land. According to Korean publication RealFoods, the investment program covers 2026-2030 and would increase employment at the company’s Uiseong operation to 46 people.

The provincial and county governments will assist with administrative procedures and financial cooperation within applicable laws and ordinances. The agreement also provides for cooperation on research, technology demonstration and commercialization.

SeaWith already operates three 500-liter cultivation units at the Uiseong Cell Culture Industry Support Center. Those facilities, with a combined volume of 1,500 liters, are producing material for the company’s planned application to South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, according to DailyPharm.

The next stage would install three 2,000-liter bioreactors at the Food Tech Research Support Center by 2027. SeaWith’s stated objective is a facility meeting Good Manufacturing Practice requirements, with a combined cultivation volume of 6,000 liters and a planned annual production capacity of 400 metric tons.

Those figures describe the company’s intended expansion. SeaWith’s own technology website separately lists a 6,000-liter commercial facility as a planned 2027 milestone, while describing its existing Uiseong production line as having a volume of 1,500 liters.

Subsequent investment would add processing, logistics and larger production facilities. Yonhap reported that expansion from 2028 onward is intended to establish an export base with annual capacity of 1,200 metric tons. The larger output target therefore belongs to a later development phase.

Regulatory work is proceeding alongside the manufacturing plans. DailyPharm reported that SeaWith intends to submit its ingredient recognition application materials to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety before the end of 2026, with commercial production beginning after the necessary approvals.

The publication also reported that attendees who had given prior consent were offered prototype dumplings containing protein cultivated from Uiseong Hanwoo cattle cells at the November 6 event. SeaWith is additionally pursuing applications for cultivated proteins in cosmetics, biomaterials and pet food ingredients.

CEO Joonho Keum described minced meat as the company’s initial production priority, according to RealFoods. He said the approach was intended to help stabilize distribution costs and support Hanwoo exports while allowing existing cattle farmers to concentrate on the breed’s culinary value.

SeaWith’s production platform combines animal cell cultivation with materials derived from algae and seaweed. On its website, the company describes a serum-free culture medium using spirulina and chlorella extracts, alongside an edible scaffold made from alginate extracted from wakame seaweed.

The company also describes its CELL BATH equipment as using rocking, single-use culture bags to grow adherent cells. Its technology program covers cell isolation, banking, culture media, scaffolds and cultivation equipment, bringing several stages of the production process within its own development work.

The investment agreement builds on SeaWith’s existing participation in Uiseong’s cell-cultured food regulatory special zone. DailyPharm reported that the company established an animal cell bank there in September 2025, followed by cultivation facilities that November, and has been collecting process data using local Hanwoo cells.

The November 6 signing formed part of a wider development program for Uiseong Biofood Valley. Yonhap reported that the event marked completion of the 225,844-square-meter industrial park and the start of construction on the separate ₩14.5 billion (US$10.6 million) Cell-Cultured Food Tech Research Support Center.

The center is intended to support companies through technology development and commercialization. The industrial park also includes accommodation facilities with 50 dormitory rooms for employees.

A second agreement signed at the event covered protein food manufacturer Ograe, which plans to invest ₩25.5 billion (US$18.7 million) and employ 37 people. Its project involves building a third factory at Biofood Valley and transferring and consolidating its two existing Seongju factories by 2027. Together, the two companies’ agreements represent planned investment of ₩45.5 billion (US$33.4 million).

‍If you liked this, check these out...

• BSF Enterprise’s 3DBT lands SeaWith deal to supply cost-cutting cell culture ingredient

• Gyeongsang National University develops hybrid cultivated steak with claimed 80% cost reduction

• React Foods takes CO₂-to-protein technology from university research to pilot scale