Vow, an Australian-cultured meat producer focusing on exotic unconventional meat, unveiled a giant meatball made from meat cultivated using the DNA of an extinct woolly mammoth. The meatball is made using sheep cells inserted with a singular mammoth gene known as myoglobin, which gives the aroma, color, taste, and African elephant DNA to fill the gaps.

Vow worked with Prof Ernst Wolvetang at the Australian Institute for Bioengineering, University of Queensland, to create the mammoth muscle protein by extracting a DNA sequence for mammoth myoglobin. The meatball was showcased at Nemo, a science museum in the Netherlands.

The product was currently not for consumption and requires rigorous testing prior to being introduced to the market.

Analyst QuickTake: Vow's recent announcement signals its intention to promote the adoption of cultured meat in the European Union, where there are currently no regulatory frameworks in place for this type of food. The reception of cell-cultured meat in the region has been mixed, with some countries like the Netherlands pioneering its development since 2013 and the debut of Dutch company Mosa Meat' s first cell-grown meat. The Dutch government has supported the industry with several grants to facilitate its growth. However, not all countries in the region are supportive of the industry. Recently, the Italian government introduced a bill to prohibit the use of lab-grown food, citing the need to protect the country's agri-food heritage.