Plant-Based Meat

GUEST ARTICLE: The terrifying truth: the addressable market at retail for plant-based meat offerings is not that big after all

11-Mar-2022 By Dr. James F. Richardson

By now, we are all familiar with the recent topline 'problem' in retail plant-based meat. The slow-down is visible in Beyond Meat's latest earnings call itself. Foodservice and international sales are driving all of the brand's growth....

Impossible Foods accuses Motif FoodWorks of patent infringement over flagship ‘heme’ ingredient; Motif blasts lawsuit as ‘baseless attempt to stifle competition’

10-Mar-2022 By Elaine Watson

Two more high-profile players in the alt meat space are clashing over IP, with Impossible Foods accusing Motif FoodWorks of infringing a patent it secured in 2020 covering the use of its flagship ‘heme’ ingredient in meat substitutes.

‘It’s such a clear pain point for formulators…’ Yali Bio joins race to create more ‘animal-like’ fats in meat, dairy alternatives

08-Mar-2022 By Elaine Watson

Fat is mission-critical to the appearance, smell, taste, mouthfeel, and texture of meat. And if you want to formulate meat alternatives that look, cook, smell, and taste like the real thing, plant-based fats will only get you so far, claims San Francisco-based...

Kroger teams up with Impossible Foods via Home Chef brand; 'We view this test as a threat to Beyond Meat,' says analyst

07-Mar-2022 By Elaine Watson

Kroger has teamed up with Impossible Foods and Denver-based Custom Made Meals, which manufactures entrees and appetizers for Kroger’s Home Chef brand, to develop plant-based protein products, although it has not provided details about the scope of the...

Fat… the final frontier for meat alternatives? Designer fat co Lypid raises $4m to commercialize microencapsulated vegan oils that behave like animal fat

03-Mar-2022 By Elaine Watson

Plant-based meat alternatives are getting 'meatier' by the day as brands reverse engineer animal products and put them back together with plants. But getting plant-based fat to behave like animal fat has been a major stumbling block for the...

Beyond Meat CEO: ‘The key question is whether this reduced growth rate is an aberration or a harbinger of things to come...'

25-Feb-2022 By Elaine Watson

Despite recent setbacks, the outlook for Beyond Meat is looking rosier in 2022, insisted CEO Ethan Brown during the firm’s Q4 earnings call Thursday as growth in international markets and a recovery in foodservice sales were offset by double-digit year-on-year...

Kellogg CEO predicts ‘shakeout’ in plant-based meat as category growth slows, especially in refrigerated

11-Feb-2022 By Elizabeth Crawford

An influx of refrigerated plant-based meat alternatives in the past two years may have helped the category generate consumer buzz and drive initial trial early in the pandemic, but a steady slowdown in sales growth in the back half of 2021 suggests a...

Plant-based: Mitigating against ingredient bottlenecks to disrupt 6% of global meat market

28-Jan-2022 By Flora Southey

In a new report the Good Food Institute investigates what ingredient requirements will help the plant-based meat industry achieve 6% penetration of the global meat market by the end of the decade.

NEWS IN BRIEF

Above Food and Umiami team to introduce whole-cut, plant-based meat and fish analogues

20-Jan-2022 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Above Food, a vertically-integrated plant-based foods company and Umiami, a food technology firm based in France, are partnering to develop whole-cut, plant-based meat and fish analogues.

Nestlé USA CMO talks 'doubling down' on plant-based, snacking, and coffee

17-Dec-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Nestlé USA is highly focused on several key food and beverage categories as it heads into 2022, including growing plant-based meat alternatives (i.e. chicken), plant-based creamers, coffee, and new snacking opportunities, says Nestlé USA CMO Alicia Enciso....

jack & annie's closes $23m Series B funding round to 'unleash the capabilities of jackfruit'

14-Dec-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

jack & annie's, an emerging plant-based meat brand made from whole jackfruit, closed a $23m Series B funding round, setting the stage for the company to expand into more conventional retail accounts and pave the way for a growing "less-processed"...

Plants not pigs! Hooray Foods raises $2.7m to expand its plant-based bacon operation, makes first move into Canada

30-Nov-2021 By Elaine Watson

Hooray Foods – which is hoping to make a splash in the plant-based meat category with allergy-friendly vegan bacon (no soy or wheat) – has raised $2.7m in a seed extension round backed by investors including former Dunkin' CEO David Hoffmann, Lyra...

Beyond Meat CEO blames ‘largely transitory dynamics’ for -13.9% decline in US revenues, offset by triple-digit growth overseas

11-Nov-2021 By Elaine Watson

Beyond Meat CEO Ethan Brown urged analysts to “differentiate between short term variability on the one hand, and ongoing strong progress toward a long term vision of becoming tomorrow's global protein company on the other,” during the plant-based...

Future Farm raises $58m to expand plant-based empire as it builds US operation

04-Nov-2021 By Elaine Watson

Brazilian plant-based meat brand Future Farm (Fazenda Futuro) has raised $58m in a Series C round led by BTG Pactual and supported by Rage Capital, bringing its cumulative funding to $89m as it builds its presence in international markets.

ADM’s chief flavorist talks flavor in plant-based meat and seafood, and losing her sense of smell thanks to COVID-19: ‘There was a little bit of, Oh dear, this isn't good…’

26-Oct-2021 By Elaine Watson

Losing your sense of smell and taste - a common side effect of COVID-19 – is pretty unsettling for anyone, but if your job is chief global flavorist at one of the world’s leading ingredients companies, you could be forgiven for experiencing some existential...

IRI: US retail sales of refrigerated plant-based meat -3.1% YoY in Q3 as Beyond Meat predicts slower sales

25-Oct-2021 By Elaine Watson

US retail sales of refrigerated plant-based meat alternatives were down -3.1% in Q3 2021 compared with the same period in 2020, but were still up 74% vs the same period in 2019, according to IRI data for the 13 weeks to September 26.

Whole cuts: The Holy Grail of alt meat? Join us October 13 in part I of FoodNavigator-USA’s Disrupting the meat and dairy case broadcast series

11-Oct-2021 By Elaine Watson

When it comes to meat alternatives, most people tend to think about plant-based or cell-cultured meat (real animal cells grown outside an animal). But fungi, in a less familiar form factor (think foamy slabs of mushroom mycelium instead of dome shaped...

How is Kroger viewing the plant-based meat opportunity? Join us October 13 in part I of FoodNavigator-USA’s Disrupting the meat and dairy case broadcast series

30-Sep-2021 By Elaine Watson

Do plant-based meat products deliver the kind of productivity on shelf to warrant their space in retailers’ regular meat counters? How are consumers shopping the category? Is this still a time of experimentation? And what are buyers looking for from new...

Upton's Naturals succeeds the slow and steady way: 'I feel like I can do more with $100,000 than some of these larger players can do with $100m'

30-Sep-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Upton's Naturals has been quietly pioneering the plant-based foods category, first with its seitan products, which were among the first to hit retail fifteen years ago, followed by jackfruit and banana blossom plant-based meat alternatives now sold...

GALLERY: Alternative protein startups to watch at the GFI Good Food Conference

29-Sep-2021 By Elaine Watson

From 'whole cuts' of seafood from fungi, to plant-based lamb, to highly functional proteins from brewers' spent grains, here's a quick snapshot of some of the alternative protein startups participating in a virtual pitch slam at last...

‘A gamechanger for flavor in meat alternatives…’ Motif FoodWorks to launch heme-binding protein delivering ‘flavor and aroma of real meat’

17-Sep-2021 By Elaine Watson

Motif FoodWorks has submitted a GRAS notification for myoglobin, a heme-binding protein found in the muscle tissue of cows that Motif is expressing in a genetically engineered yeast strain. The protein – which the Boston-based firm reckons could be a...

'We are encouraged by the growth that is coming from meat eaters...’ Conagra Brands (Gardein) talks plant-based meat

06-Sep-2021 By Elaine Watson

The Gardein plant-based meat brand notched up retail sales of $170m in measured channels* in the year to July 25, up 33.5% versus two years ago, says brand owner Conagra Brands, which says it's particularly encouraged by the 'growth that is...

Asian plant-based meat sensation OmniFoods makes US retail debut with OmniPork

26-Aug-2021 By Elaine Watson

Asian plant-based meat sensation OmniFoods is making its US retail debut via a launch in Sprouts stores nationwide and select Whole Foods stores with three products: OmniPork Ground, OmniPork Strips and OmniPork Luncheon.

Beyond Meat and former co-packer accuse each other of failing to supply critical documents, text messages, during discovery in increasingly bitter legal dispute

24-Aug-2021 By Elaine Watson

Don Lee Farms has filed a motion to compel Beyond Meat to share text messages from CEO Ethan Brown in the latest installment of an increasingly acrimonious legal dispute* between the plant-based meat firm and former co-manufacturer Don Lee Farms triggered...

Impossible Sausage hits retail market: ‘Everything we’ve brought to market in retail so far has been wildly well received’

11-Aug-2021 By Elaine Watson

Impossible Sausage made from plants – a soy-based ground sausage product in savory and spicy variants – will make its retail debut this month and should be in 13,000 stores by the year end, says Impossible Foods, which says retailers have been encouraged...

Beyond Meat predicts small drop in revenues in Q3 (vs Q2) amid Delta uncertainty, hints at 'new innovation rolling out with one of our big partners'

06-Aug-2021 By Elaine Watson

Beyond Meat is predicting a drop in revenues in the third quarter ($120-140m) vs the second quarter ($149.4m) reflecting some recent distribution losses in foodservice, labor issues at some partners, and uncertainty as the Delta variant of COVID-19 spreads....

‘The competition is incredible…’ Planterra Foods (JBS) moves into the frozen aisle with OZO as plant-based meat category heats up

30-Jul-2021 By Elaine Watson

Planterra Foods, the plant-based division of meat giant JBS - which debuted in the refrigerated aisle last summer under the OZO brand – has moved into the frozen aisle, expanded its relationship with Boulder-based fungi tech co MycoTechnology, and is...

SPECIAL REPORT: Plant-based meat formulation in focus, from Beyond Meat to Motif FoodWorks, Roquette, and Cargill: ‘The meat alternative space has the fastest iteration cycles out there’

27-Jul-2021 By Elaine Watson

If you look at the ingredients lists of most plant-based burgers, they’re not wildly different – a combination of extruded plant proteins, hard and liquid fats, natural flavors, yeast, methylcellulose, starch, seasonings and perhaps added vitamins and...

'We are actively looking at all major animal-protein categories...' NotCo raises $235m in series D to expand its global plant-based meat, dairy empire

26-Jul-2021 By Elaine Watson

Santiago-based food tech company NotCo has raised $235m in a Series D round led by Tiger Global and supported by DFJ Growth Fund, ZOMA Lab, athletes Lewis Hamilton and Roger Federer, and musician and DJ Questlove, taking its cumulative funding to $350m...

Plant-based meat co Future Farm gears up for US launch led by Red Bull veteran

01-Jul-2021 By Elaine Watson

Brazilian plant-based meat brand Future Farm (Fazenda Futuro) is gearing up to enter the burgeoning plant-based meat category in the US after a successful debut in Brazil and several other markets including Chile, Mexico, the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands.

Impossible Foods CEO on processed food, selling heme to other brands, and reaching price parity

24-Jun-2021 By Elaine Watson

Attempts to put plant-based meats “in the same category as Twinkies” because they are both “processed foods,” should be dismissed as “meat industry propaganda,” Impossible Foods CEO Dr Pat Brown told delegates at the Future Food Tech alternative proteins...

Lightlife president predicts more segmentation in plant-based meat, defends ‘real food’ stance: ‘It was not a PR stunt, we wanted to start a conversation…’

15-Jun-2021 By Elaine Watson

Lightlife Foods’ recent campaign pitting its ‘real food’ credentials vs the 'hyper-processed' wares of Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat was dismissed by some as a PR stunt. However, it started a conversation, says president Dan Curtin, who predicts...

IRI 2020 New Product Pacesetters: Who made the list?

14-Jun-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

From emerging keto ice cream brand, Rebel, and Beyond Meat's plant-based sausage, to big food's permissibly indulgent takes on legacy brands (Reese's Thins and Zero Sugar Mountain Dew), one theme rang true in IRI's 2020 New Product...

Nowadays plant-based nuggets boast ‘unparalleled' nutritional profile: 'We don’t just need to remove animals, we need to create better products'

03-Jun-2021 By Elaine Watson

The plant-based meat category is not short of starry-eyed founders armed with me-too products and a lofty mission to fix the broken food system (spoiler alert, they probably won’t). But there is still room for new players with a genuine point of difference...

Bernstein on plant-based meat: ‘We believe this is still very much a two-horse race’

28-May-2021 By Elaine Watson

Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods enjoy more than twice the in-store velocity of other plant-based meat brands in the US retail market, "and so we believe this is still very much a two-horse race,” claim analysts at Bernstein, who say some of the...

Plant-based chicken maker Daring Foods raises $40m in Series B, demonstrates ‘impressive product-market fit in a short period of time’

19-May-2021 By Elaine Watson

Daring Foods – a startup seeking to punch above its weight in the plant-based chicken category via a lower calorie product with a shorter, cleaner, ingredients list and bold branding – has closed a $40m Series B round led by D1 Capital Partners, and supported...

Plant-based cheese, meat, formulation gamechanger? Motif FoodWorks gains exclusive access to two ‘transformative’ technologies

13-May-2021 By Elaine Watson

Boston-based Motif FoodWorks has gained exclusive access to technologies designed to address two key challenges in plant-based formulations: achieving melt and stretch in plant-based cheese, and healthier fat that enables marbling in plant-based meat....

Both sides claim victory in latest installment of bitter legal dispute between Beyond Meat and former co-manufacturer Don Lee Farms

11-May-2021 By Elaine Watson

Both sides have claimed victory in the latest installment of an increasingly acrimonious legal dispute* between Beyond Meat and its former co-manufacturer Don Lee Farms triggered by the early termination of an exclusive five-year supply agreement the...

Beyond Meat Q1: ‘We have recently begun to see a slow thaw occurring within foodservice’

07-May-2021 By Elaine Watson

Beyond Meat posted a 11.4% increase in net revenues to $108.2m in the first quarter (ended April 3) and a net loss of $27.3m, with solid growth in retail (+45% to $81.025m) dented by declines in foodservice (-34% to $27.139m), although execs say they’re...

Beyond Meat unveils the Beyond Burger 3.0 with likeability scoring ‘on-par with 80/20 ground beef burgers’

27-Apr-2021 By Elaine Watson

The next iteration of the Beyond Burger - featuring 35% less saturated fat and 75% more iron than 80/20 beef burgers, a comparable level of B vitamins, and a meatier flavor – will hit grocery stores next week and restaurants in June, with a leaner version...

Very Good Food Company boosts production of plant-based 'butchered' meat alternatives by 2,500+%

20-Apr-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

The Very Good Food Company Inc. -- part of Eat Beyond Global Holdings' portfolio of alternative protein brands -- has upgraded its manufacturing facility to significantly expand production of its plant-based 'butchered' meat alternatives....

Hungry Planet raises $25m to meet ‘pent up demand’ for plant-based meat beyond burgers, sausage

19-Apr-2021 By Elizabeth Crawford

After finetuning a diverse range of plant-based meat and seafood that goes far beyond the burger- and sausage-heavy offerings of today, Hungry Planet is ready to ramp up production and distribution of all nine of its proteins across retail, foodservice...

Tofurky CEO on double-digit growth, fighting state labeling laws, and fat in plant-based meat: ‘There’s a juiciness problem…’

09-Apr-2021 By Elaine Watson

With VC-backed food tech startups deploying molecular biologists and astrophysicists now competing for shelf space in the red-hot meat and dairy alternatives market with equally deep-pocketed multinational meat and CPG companies, where do independent...

PBFA slams ‘anti-competitive, anti-free market’ Wisconsin bills targeting plant-based dairy and meat

08-Apr-2021 By Elaine Watson

The Plant Based Foods Association has slammed bills proposing restrictions on the use of terms such as ‘milk’ and ‘meat’ on food labels and restaurant menus in Wisconsin, while state lawmakers insist they are urgently required to prevent consumer confusion....

Beyond Meat expands international reach with first end-to-end manufacturing facility outside the US: 'We're committed to investing in China as a region for long-term growth'

07-Apr-2021 By Elaine Watson

Beyond Meat has opened its first end-to-end manufacturing facility outside the US in the Jiaxing Economic & Technological Development Zone (JXEDZ) near Shanghai.

‘2020 was a breakout year for plant-based foods…’ GFI, PBFA, SPINS, unveil 2020 retail sales data

06-Apr-2021 By Elaine Watson

Sales of plant-based foods that directly replace animal products - including meat, seafood, eggs, dairy, condiments and meals containing plant-based alternatives - grew by 27% to $7bn in measured channels in the year to December 27, 2020, according to...

‘We are meat’: Impossible Foods launches first national ad campaign targeting meat eaters

06-Apr-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

Impossible Foods has launched its first national advertising campaign targeting meat eaters who haven’t yet tried Impossible products, specifically its flagship product, the plant-based Impossible Burger.

Barvecue seizes ‘tremendous opportunities’ in plant-based barbeque, ramps up production at new smokehouse

18-Mar-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

North Carolina-based Barvecue is significantly scaling up production of its plant-based pulled pork line, tapping into an underserved opportunity in the plant-based meat alternative space, says brand founder and CEO Lee Cooper.

‘Impact will come with scale…’ Ingredion, PURIS, ramp up plant protein capacity

11-Mar-2021 By Elaine Watson

Market projections for meat and dairy alternatives vary wildly, with Impossible Foods’ CEO predicting animal agriculture could hit a ‘death spiral’ by 2035, while Wells Fargo reckons plant-based meat will account for a rather more modest 4% of the US...

'When these restaurant chains move, the entire food industry takes notice...'

Beyond Meat ties up with McDonald's, Yum! Brands, gears up for launch of '3.0' platform: 'When people grab a plant-based burger, they assume it's going to be healthier'

26-Feb-2021 By Elaine Watson

In a clear signal that plant-based meat is hitting the mainstream, Beyond Meat has announced global partnerships with two of the biggest players in fast food: McDonald’s, and Yum! Brands (KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut), a month after striking a deal with...