Lab-grown meat has been approved for pet food in Britain, making it the first country in Europe where the products will be available to buy.

UK regulators have authorised British start-up Meatly’s lab-grown meat to be used in pet food, with the first batches of cultivated chicken to be sold in pet stores as early as this year, The Telegraph reported.

The cultivated pet food, which uses meat grown from animal cells, is initially going to be used in dog food and has already undergone taste trials with dogs.

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Meatly chief executive and co-founder Owen Ensor told the publication: “The European Union has traditionally been a more conservative regulator and the US is getting embroiled in food politics – unnecessarily, in my opinion. So the UK can really step up here.

“There has been an opportunity with Brexit, both legally with the disengaging from the EU process, but also from a government perspective. There’s been a lot of enthusiasm for innovative solutions and I think that we’ll see that continue with the current government.”

The brand is now planning to licence its technology to other companies, which could use it to make meat for human consumption.

While the environmental impact of lab-grown meat has been questioned by researchers, Ensor has claimed cultivated meat is “dramatically more sustainable” than meat on the market.

He added: “There’s a real challenge for people who love animals so they want to get a pet but that requires killing other animals to feed those pets. We want to make this as available as possible.”