The Bet on Lab-Grown Cocoa

Faced with the soaring cocoa prices, fueled notably by the effects of climate change on harvests, the chocolate industry is seeking new solutions. The Israeli start-up Celleste Bio has developed the first bars made from lab-grown cocoa butter. Founded in 2022, the company conducted its trials at the Cadbury factory in Bournville, Birmingham. An innovation that opens new perspectives for an industry facing increasing tensions.

AI Index: Mediterranean Knowledge Library
The bet on lab-grown cocoa
22-med – June 2026
• In response to the cocoa crisis, Celleste Bio develops lab-grown cocoa butter.
• This innovation aims to complement traditional production without altering the chocolate experience.
#israel #chocolate #cocoa #innovation #agriculture #climate #food.

Behind this innovation lies a crisis shaking the entire cocoa sector. Global production largely relies on a few West African countries, particularly Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, which concentrate the majority of the harvests. However, in recent years, drought and excessive rainfall episodes linked to climate change, along with certain diseases affecting cocoa trees, have weighed on yields. Meanwhile, global demand continues to rise, supported notably by the growth of new consumer markets. As a result, the price of cocoa has risen from less than $3,000 (about €2,600) per ton to over $12,000 (about €10,400) in just two years. Faced with these increasing supply tensions, some companies are exploring new avenues to complement traditional production and secure the future of chocolate.

Reproducing in the lab what the cocoa tree does

“Creating a technology capable of producing real cocoa butter required a lot of rigor and patience. It is a very specific fat that necessitates the perfect combination of, among other things, the right fatty acid profile and the right triglyceride composition. Cocoa beans naturally produce this in a pod on a tree. We therefore had to create an environment that exactly reproduces these conditions, but in a fully controlled setting, so that the cells develop as if they were in their natural habitat,” explains Michal Beressi Golomb, CEO of Celleste Bio. This research program is supported by Mondelez*, owner of Cadbury.

“We take a bean from a pod, extract the cells used to produce cocoa butter, then place them in a bioreactor containing sugar, water, vitamins, and minerals. The cells then multiply to form a cocoa mass. We then extract the butter and restart the growth process,” she continues.

Chocolate manufacturers can use Celleste Bio’s cocoa butter directly, without modifying a single element of their manufacturing process. The technology employed by Celleste Bio relies on a cocoa cell bank comprising different varieties and strains, as well as a process that allows for the production of consistent and reproducible batches of cocoa butter.

Ensuring Sustainable Profitability