Pets at Home Group PLC (LSE:PETS) said it is the first company in the world to sell lab-grown meat for pet food, after 'Chick Bites' went on sale in limited release at one of its stores, in west London.
Chick Bites are made from plant-based ingredients and cultivated meat, by manufacturer Meatly, and gained the regulatory green light from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Animal and Plant Health Agency last summer.
Pets at Home is a major investor in Meatly.
The first Chick Bites will go on sale at Pets at Home in Brentford on Friday.
Cultivated meat is produced by growing cells and does not require the raising or slaughter of animals, which Meatly said is made from "a single sample of cells... taken from one chicken egg, from which enough cultivated meat can be produced to feed pets forever".
Meatly said its lab-grown chicken is "just as tasty and nutritious as traditional chicken breast, containing all the essential amino acids, critical fatty acids, minerals and vitamins needed for pet health".
Pets at Home claimed to be the first retailer in the world to sell pet food made from cultivated meat, which it stressed was part of its ambition to "make pet food more sustainable by making and selling products using less carbon, land, and water".
Meatly's regulatory clearance last July made the UK the first country in Europe to back cultivated meat for use in pet food.