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Review
. 2022 Oct:168:113342.
doi: 10.1016/j.fct.2022.113342. Epub 2022 Aug 11.

Safety evaluation of Neurospora crassa mycoprotein for use as a novel meat alternative and enhancer

Bradley M Bartholomai  1 , Katherine M Ruwe  2 , Jonathan Thurston  2 , Prachi Jha  2 , Kevin Scaife  3 , Ryan Simon  3 , Mohamed Abdelmoteleb  4 , Richard E Goodman  5 , Moran Farhi  2
Affiliations
Review

Safety evaluation of Neurospora crassa mycoprotein for use as a novel meat alternative and enhancer

Bradley M Bartholomai et al. Food Chem Toxicol. 2022 Oct.

Abstract

Cultivation of filamentous fungi to produce sustainable, nutrient rich meat replacements has recently attracted significant commercial and research interest. Here, we report evidence for the safety and nutritional value of Neurospora crassa mycoprotein, a whole mycelium food ingredient produced by fermentation and minimal downstream processing. N. crassa has a long history of human use in fermented foods and in molecular biology research. A survey of studies that used N. crassa in animal feed revealed no adverse effects to the health of the animals. Furthermore, a review of the literature found no reports of confirmed allergenicity or toxicity in humans involving N. crassa. Genomic toxigenicity analysis and in vitro testing did not identify any toxins in N. crassa mycoprotein. Two independent genomic allergenicity studies did not identify proteins that would be considered a particular risk for allergenic potential. Furthermore, nutritional analysis demonstrated that N. crassa mycoprotein is a good source of complete protein and is rich in fiber, potassium, and iron. Taken together, the presented data and the history of human use without evidence of human or animal harm indicate that foods containing N. crassa can generally be regarded as safe.

Keywords: Food safety; Meat alternative; Mycoprotein; Neurospora crassa; Sustainability.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Bradley M. Bartholomai reports financial support was provided by The Better Meat Co. Katherine M. Ruwe reports financial support was provided by The Better Meat Co. Jonathan Thurston reports financial support was provided by The Better Meat Co. Prachi Jha reports financial support was provided by The Better Meat Co. Kevin Scaife reports financial support was provided by The Better Meat Co. Ryan Simon reports financial support was provided by The Better Meat Co. Mohamed Abdelmoteleb reports financial support was provided by The Better Meat Co. Richard E. Goodman reports financial support was provided by The Better Meat Co. Moran Farhi reports financial support was provided by The Better Meat Co. Katherine M. Ruwe has patent pending to The Better Meat Co. Moran Farhi has patent pending to The Better Meat Co.

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