Singapore cultured seafood startup wins Nikkei Asia Award

Shiok Meats takes on food security with lab-grown shrimp, crab

20211215 Shiok Meats CEO Sandhya Sriram and CTO Ka Yi Ling

Shiok Meats co-founders CEO Sandhya Sriram, left, and Chief Technology Officer Ling Ka Yi pose with their lab-cultured seafood product. (Photo courtesy of Shiok Meats)

KENTARO IWAMOTO, Nikkei staff writer

December 20, 2021 05:00 JST

SINGAPORE -- A Singaporean startup that makes lab-cultured seafood has been named winner of the inaugural Nikkei Asia Award for its unique technology and potential benefit to society, Nikkei announced Monday.

Founded in 2018, Shiok Meats is a unique company in Asia's emerging alternative food industry, as it focuses on shrimp, lobster, and crab. Its products have the potential to contribute to food security as the global population grows. They may also help resolve problems such as overfishing and environmental damage stemming from construction of fish farms -- key issues for Asia.