LEIDEN, NETHERLANDS — Cultivated meat company Meatable confirmed on Oct. 2 that it hired Aris de Rijke, PhD, as the company’s new chief technology officer.
De Rijke comes to the business with more than two decades of experience in innovation, development and industrial implementation of novel technologies, having worked at global companies such as Shell, DSM and GFBiochemicals.
Meatable explained that he has expertise in scaling technology, which will help the company prepare to bring cultivated meat products to market.
“We are thrilled to have Aris joining us to further strengthen our leadership team,” said Jeff ‘Trip’ Tripician, chief executive officer of Meatable. “His experience will be invaluable to Meatable’s path to commercialization. Aris will play a central role in ensuring Meatable’s successful global expansion and market leadership in the cultivated meat industry as we continue to innovate in sustainable food solutions.”
During his career, de Rijke worked on innovation and development of cutting-edge separation and biomass conversion technologies. He also led multicultural, global R&D organizations in both corporate settings and start-ups.
While working as the CTO at GFBiochemicals, de Rijke took on a necessary role in developing proprietary biomolecule technologies from ideation to commercial-scale manufacturing.
“Joining Meatable at this critical juncture is incredibly exciting,” de Rijke stated. “Cultivated meat offers a solution to feed the world while reducing carbon emissions, water consumption and nitrogen pollution as the global demand for meat is projected to rise another 70% by 2050. Meatable’s technology and vision align perfectly with my experience in scaling up innovative technologies and transitioning them to commercial-scale production.”
As he starts at Meatable, de Rijke will oversee the company’s science and technology division in Leiden, Netherlands. Daan Luining, the previous CTO, will transition into a new role in the chief innovation office responsible for open innovation process and technology intelligence.
De Rijke holds a PhD in chemical engineering from Delft University of Technology.