Glossary
The language of alternative proteins
61 essential terms, in English and Portuguese, written for this site. For the full technical reference, see the GFI Brazil Cultivated Meat Glossary.
Sector
- Alternative proteinProteína alternativa
- Protein made from plants, by fermentation or by growing cells, rather than from raised animals.
- Cellular agricultureAgricultura celular
- Umbrella term for using cells and related technologies to make ingredients, food and other farm products. Not a synonym for cell cultivation.
- Cultivated meatCarne cultivada
- Meat made by growing animal cells directly. The term preferred by the sector.
- Factory farmingPecuária industrial
- Intensive animal production at industrial scale.
- Food manufacturing facilityInstalação de produção de alimentos
- The regulated plant where final products are made. The sector prefers this to "lab".
- Hybrid productProduto híbrido
- A food combining sources, such as cultivated cells with plant protein.
- Life cycle assessment (LCA)Avaliação do ciclo de vida (ACV)
- Method for estimating a product’s environmental impact from inputs to disposal.
- Plant-basedÀ base de plantas
- Made from plants and formulated to replace an animal product.
Technologies
- 3D bioprintingBioimpressão 3D
- Depositing cells and materials in layers to build a tissue structure.
- Biomass fermentationFermentação de biomassa
- Growing fast-growing microorganisms, such as fungi, for their protein-rich mass, which is the food itself.
- BioprocessBioprocesso
- The sequence of steps that uses living cells to make a product at scale.
- Cell cultivationCultivo celular
- Taking cells from an animal or plant and giving them the nutrients and conditions to multiply and mature into tissue.
- ExtrusionExtrusão
- Pressing and heating plant protein to give it a fibrous, meat-like texture.
- Gas fermentationFermentação gasosa
- Fermentation in which microorganisms are fed gases such as CO₂ along with nutrients.
- Molecular farmingAgricultura molecular
- Engineering plants to produce a target ingredient, which is then extracted and purified.
- Precision fermentationFermentação de precisão
- Using microorganisms such as yeast to produce a specific functional ingredient, often by inserting the gene for it. Long used for rennet and insulin.
- Scale-upEscalonamento
- Moving a process from small volumes to industrial production.
- Tissue engineeringEngenharia de tecidos
- Combining cells, scaffolds and signals to build functional tissue.
- Traditional fermentationFermentação tradicional
- Using microbes to change the flavor or texture of ingredients, as in tempeh.
Cells and organisms
- AdipocyteAdipócito
- Fat cell, important to the flavor and texture of meat.
- BiopsyBiópsia
- Removing a small tissue sample, a common way of obtaining starter cells.
- Cell bankBanco de células
- A stored, characterized stock of cells used to start production.
- Cell lineLinhagem celular
- A population of cells that can be kept growing in culture.
- DifferentiationDiferenciação
- The process in which a cell becomes a specialized type, such as muscle.
- FibroblastFibroblasto
- Cell that makes connective tissue and the extracellular matrix.
- Host strainCepa hospedeira
- The microorganism engineered to make the target molecule in precision fermentation.
- ImmortalizationImortalização
- Changing cells so that they keep dividing beyond their normal limit.
- MyceliumMicélio
- The root-like network of threads of a fungus.
- MycoproteinMicoproteína
- Protein-rich food made from fungal biomass.
- MyoblastMioblasto
- Precursor cell that fuses with others to form muscle fibers.
- Pluripotent stem cellCélula-tronco pluripotente
- Stem cell able to become almost any type of cell in the body.
- ProliferationProliferação
- The phase in which cells multiply in number.
- Satellite cellCélula satélite
- Muscle stem cell, widely used as a starting point for cultivated meat.
- SenescenceSenescência
- The point at which cells permanently stop dividing.
- Stem cellCélula-tronco
- Unspecialized cell that can renew itself and turn into other cell types.
Culture media
- Amino acidAminoácido
- Building block of proteins and a key ingredient of culture media.
- Culture mediumMeio de cultura
- The nutrient liquid in which cells grow, usually the largest cost in cultivated meat.
- FeedstockMatéria-prima
- Raw material that feeds a fermentation or culture, such as sugars.
- Fetal bovine serum (FBS)Soro fetal bovino (SFB)
- Serum from calf fetuses, historically used in cell culture. The sector is working to replace it.
- Growth factorFator de crescimento
- Signaling protein that tells cells to grow or differentiate.
- HydrolysateHidrolisado
- Protein broken into smaller pieces, used as a low-cost nutrient source.
- Serum-free mediumMeio sem soro
- Culture medium made without animal serum.
Scaffolds
- BiomaterialBiomaterial
- Material designed to interact with living cells, as in scaffolds.
- DecellularizationDescelularização
- Removing cells from a tissue, such as a plant, to reuse its structure.
- Extracellular matrix (ECM)Matriz extracelular (MEC)
- The network of proteins and sugars around cells in tissue.
- HydrogelHidrogel
- Water-rich polymer gel used to hold cells.
- MicrocarrierMicrocarreador
- Tiny bead that gives adherent cells a surface to grow on in a bioreactor.
- ScaffoldSuporte (scaffold)
- A structure that supports cells and gives tissue its shape.
Bioreactors and process
- BioreactorBiorreator
- The vessel that gives cells or microbes controlled conditions to grow.
- ContaminationContaminação
- Unwanted microbes entering a culture, a key operational risk.
- Downstream processingProcessamento a jusante
- The steps after growth that harvest and purify the product.
- Fed-batchBatelada alimentada
- Adding nutrients during a run without removing the culture.
- PerfusionPerfusão
- Continuously replacing medium while keeping cells in the reactor.
- Shear stressTensão de cisalhamento
- Force from moving fluid, which can damage cells.
- Stirred-tank bioreactorBiorreator de tanque agitado
- Common bioreactor design that mixes contents with an impeller.
Market and regulation
- AnalogAnálogo
- A product designed to replace a specific animal product.
- B2B / B2CB2B / B2C
- Selling to other businesses, or directly to consumers.
- Contract manufacturerFabricante terceirizado
- A company that makes products for other brands.
- GRASGRAS
- "Generally recognized as safe", a US food ingredient status.
- Novel foodNovo alimento
- A regulatory category for foods without a history of consumption, such as in the EU.
- Price parityParidade de preço
- When a new product costs the same as the conventional one.
Nothing found.
How to talk about it
Based on the guide Key Terms in Cellular Agriculture (Cellular Agriculture Australia, 2023). The guide also advises against calling products "ethical" or "sustainable" in absolute terms, because this cannot be measured. On this site, "ethical" describes the question driving the project, not a label on each company.
| Prefer | Avoid | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Cultivated meat | Lab-grown, in vitro, test-tube, vat-grown | Sounds unnatural and is inaccurate: final products are made in food plants. |
| Cultivated meat | Synthetic meat | Too broad, with negative connotations. |
| Cultivated meat | Slaughter-free, cruelty-free | Value-laden and derogatory to traditional producers. |
| Cultivated meat | Fake meat, frankenmeat, schmeat | Derogatory and not descriptive. |
| Cultivated meat | Clean meat | Value-laden, and does not distinguish it from plant-based meat. |
| Cellular agriculture | Cell-based food production | Too narrow: not all products are food or animal-derived. |
| Precision-fermented | Acellular | Not widely understood. |
| Functionally equivalent | Nature-identical, dairy-identical | "Identical" is not technically accurate and may carry legal risk. |