“Our focus must now narrow to a tighter set of priorities that pave the way for our product launches in the next two years,” Valeti wrote in the email seen by WIRED. “We need to deliver on the work that remains, especially on critical milestones that are yet to be hit or are delayed.” Upside is among the best-funded startups in the cultivated meat industry, and one of only two firms that is cleared to sell its product in the US.
Outside the event, a mobile billboard protesting against cultivated meat directed people to a website backed by the Center for Environment and Welfare—a group linked to public relations firm Berman and Company, which has a long history of supporting nonprofits that defend the interests of the food and drink industry.