Cultured Meat as a Novel Food: Emerging Food Safety Challenges, Risk Assessment Gaps, and Regulatory Readiness

ABSTRACT Cultured meat, also referred to as cell‐based or cultivated meat, has emerged as a disruptive innovation in the global food system, promising environmental sustainability, animal welfare benefits, and supply chain resilience. Despite rapid technological advances and recent regulatory approvals in selected countries, food safety remains the most critical determinant of public acceptance and market scalability. Unlike conventional meat, cultured meat introduces novel risk profiles associated with cell sourcing, bioprocessing conditions, culture media components, scaffolding materials, and post‐harvest handling. This review critically examines cultured meat from a food safety perspective, integrating recent scientific evidence, regulatory developments, and emerging risk assessment frameworks. We highlight key safety concerns including microbial contamination in bioreactors, genetic and epigenetic stability of cell lines, chemical hazards from growth factors and scaffolds, allergenicity, and long‐term toxicological uncertainties. Importantly, this review proposes a next‐generation food safety paradigm for cultured meat, emphasizing process‐based safety control, real‐time monitoring using omics and biosensors, and adaptive regulatory science. By identifying critical knowledge gaps and offering a roadmap for harmonized safety governance, this article positions food safety as the cornerstone for the responsible commercialization of cultured meat.