{"id":5038,"date":"2026-04-28T09:38:28","date_gmt":"2026-04-28T08:38:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/?p=5038"},"modified":"2026-05-13T09:57:25","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T08:57:25","slug":"the-sustainable-transition-toward-fbs-alternatives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/2026\/04\/28\/the-sustainable-transition-toward-fbs-alternatives\/","title":{"rendered":"The sustainable transition toward FBS alternatives: Greening cell culture"},"content":{"rendered":"

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” fullwidth=”on” next_background_color=”#000000″ global_module=”322″][et_pb_fullwidth_menu global_parent=”322″ _builder_version=”3.0.106″ menu_id=”7″ submenu_direction=”downwards” fullwidth_menu=”off” background_layout=”dark” module_class=”main-navigation” \/][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”off” specialty=”on” prev_background_color=”#000000″ next_background_color=”#1d1d1d”][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ specialty_columns=”2″][et_pb_row_inner locked=”off”][et_pb_column_inner type=”4_4″ saved_specialty_column_type=”2_3″][et_pb_post_title _builder_version=”3.0.106″ title=”on” meta=”on” author=”on” date=”on” categories=”on” comments=”on” featured_image=”on” featured_placement=”above” text_color=”dark” text_background=”off” locked=”on” parent_locked=”off” \/][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_layout=”light” parent_locked=”off”]<\/p>\n

Blog by Helena (Huiyuan) Meng, third year PhD candidate, School of Biological sciences<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Trigger warning:\u00a0<\/span><\/b>This article discusses foetal bovine serum (FBS) sourcing and includes references to animal slaughter and animal welfare impacts.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Have you ever stopped to wonder where\u00a0foetal\u00a0bovine\u00a0serum\u00a0(FBS) comes from when\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0added to cell culture media? For more than six decades, FBS has been a staple\u00a0in\u00a0labs, valued for its rich mix of\u00a0proteins, growth factors, fatty\u00a0acids\u00a0and\u00a0vitamins\u00a0that support the growth of mammalian cells\u00a0(Lee et al., 2022).\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

FBS production process. Meng and Day (2026)<\/p><\/div>\n

But behind this routine\u00a0practice\u00a0lies\u00a0broader\u00a0concerns around sustainability, cost, and animal welfare. FBS is obtained from bovine\u00a0foetuses\u00a0during the slaughter of pregnant cows\u00a0(Liu et al., 2023). As global demand continues to rise,\u00a0growing by an estimated 5\u20137% each year,\u00a0production is\u00a0estimated\u00a0to\u00a0slaughter\u00a0over one\u00a0million\u00a0foetal\u00a0calves annually\u00a0(Weber et al., 2025).\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In response, scientists\u00a0are\u00a0working to develop\u00a0FBS\u00a0alternatives, including human and animal\u00a0derived, plant-based\u00a0supplements, and\u00a0chemically defined\u00a0serum-free media, aiming to make research not only effective but also more\u00a0environmentally\u00a0sustainable and\u00a0ethical\u00a0(Weber et al., 2025).<\/span><\/p>\n

The transition towards\u00a0FBS alternatives<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

In our review paper, we explored the applicability of FBS alternatives across different research areas, and proposed guidance for tailoring these\u00a0alternatives\u00a0to better support the transition away from traditional FBS use\u00a0(Meng and Day, 2026).\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This shift in cell culture practices is closely aligned with UK government directives aimed at reducing the use of animal-derived products in research, as well as with the University ongoing\u00a0<\/span>UKRI\u00a0SPARKHub<\/span><\/a>\u00a0initiatives focused on sustainability and innovation. It also contributes to\u00a0minimizing\u00a0the environmental impact associated with livestock farming, including resource consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In parallel, resources such as the\u00a0<\/span>Foetal\u00a0Calf Serum-free Database<\/span><\/a>\u00a0established by the 3Rs Centre Utrecht, together with advances in cultured meat technologies and growing institutional incentives, are accelerating the development, dissemination, and adoption of FBS alternatives across scientific research, biomanufacturing, and clinical applications\u00a0(3Rs Centre Utrecht, 2024).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A call for sustainable research<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

As an early-career researcher, working on this\u00a0review has\u00a0helped\u00a0me to\u00a0think\u00a0more critically\u00a0about\u00a0the hidden costs behind routine laboratory practices.\u00a0I am inspired\u00a0to contribute to the development and adoption of more sustainable,\u00a0ethical\u00a0and\u00a0application-specific\u00a0culture system, and to advocate for\u00a0research\u00a0where\u00a0transparency, reproducibility, and ethical sourcing are\u00a0no longer\u00a0optional, but fundamental expectations.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Additional\u00a0information:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

This work aligns closely with the\u00a0United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly\u00a0<\/span>Goal 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production)\u00a0<\/span><\/i>and\u00a0<\/span>Goal 9 (Industry,\u00a0Innovation\u00a0and Infrastructure).<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Please check\u00a0our\u00a0review\u00a0paper:\u00a0doi:\u00a0<\/span>10.3389\/ftox.2026.1776815<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Please check the\u00a0Foetal\u00a0Calf Serum-free\u00a0Database:\u00a0<\/span>https:\/\/fcs-free.org\/fcs-database<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

References:<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

3Rs Centre Utrecht (2024).\u00a0Foetal\u00a0calf serum (FCS)-free database RRID:SCR_018769.\u00a0Available online at:\u00a0<\/span>https:\/\/fcs-free.sites.uu.nl\/database\/<\/span><\/a>\u00a0(Accessed\u00a0April 23, 2026).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Lee, D. Y., Lee, S. Y., Yun, S. H., Jeong, J. W., Kim, J. H., Kim, H. W., et al. (2022). Review\u00a0of the Current research on\u00a0foetal\u00a0bovine serum and the development of cultured meat.\u00a0Food Sci. Animal\u00a0Resour. 42, 775\u2013799.\u00a0doi:<\/span>10.5851\/kosfa.2022.e46.<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Liu, S., Yang, W., Li,\u00a0Y.\u00a0and Sun, C. (2023). Fetal bovine serum,\u00a0an important factor\u00a0affecting the reproducibility of cell experiments.\u00a0Scientific Reports,\u00a013,\u00a01942.\u00a0doi:<\/span>10.1038\/s41598-023-29060-7<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Meng,\u00a0H.\u00a0and Day,\u00a0PJR.\u00a0(2026) Exploring\u00a0ethical,\u00a0sustainable\u00a0and effective\u00a0foetal\u00a0bovine serum\u00a0alternatives for in vitro\u00a0mammalian cell culture.\u00a0Front.\u00a0Toxicol. 8:1776815.\u00a0doi:<\/span>10.3389\/ftox.2026.1776815.<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Weber, T., Malakpour-Permlid, A., Chary, A., D\u2019Alessandro, V., Haut, L., Seufert,\u00a0S.,et\u00a0al. (2025).\u00a0Foetal\u00a0bovine serum: how to leave it behind in the pursuit of more reliable\u00a0science.\u00a0Front.\u00a0Toxicol. 7, 1612903.\u00a0doi:<\/span>10.3389\/ftox.2025.1612903.<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Blog by Helena (Huiyuan) Meng, third year PhD candidate, School of Biological sciences\u00a0 Trigger warning:\u00a0This article discusses foetal bovine serum (FBS) sourcing and includes references to animal slaughter and animal welfare impacts.\u00a0 Have you ever stopped to wonder where\u00a0foetal\u00a0bovine\u00a0serum\u00a0(FBS) comes from when\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0added to cell culture media? For more than six decades, FBS has been a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8454,"featured_media":5041,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[61,60],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5038","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-environmental-sustainability","category-student-blogs-on-es"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5038","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8454"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5038"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5038\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5082,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5038\/revisions\/5082"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5041"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5038"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5038"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/bmh-sr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5038"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}