The worldwide plant-based foods industry accounted for $8 billion in sales and received $1.2 billion in investment in 2022, in keeping with new figures from the Good Food Institute.
Those with recent funding include No Meat Factory, Planetarians, ISH Company and Chunk Foods, which is developing a plant-based alternative protein that mimics the feel and taste of traditional meat, initially steak, and eventually pork, lamb and poultry.
Amos Golan, founder and CEO of Chunk Foods, told TechCrunch that while the plant-based market is around $8 billion, the standard meat market is about $1.4 trillion, which implies “we’re not even scratching the surface of the addressable market there.” He founded the corporate in 2020 while at MIT.
Israel-based Chunk Foods took in $15 million in seed funding in November, which Golan said “is the most important seed round ever for an Israeli plant-based company.” Fall Line Capital led the brand new investment and was joined by The MIT E14 fund and FootPrint Coalition. Chunk Foods previously raised $2 million in pre-seed funding.
The corporate develops whole cuts of different proteins using fermentation technology and food-grade microorganisms to show soy and wheat into its proteins. And, yes, Chunk Foods does have some products within the pipeline without those two ingredients for consumers with allergies. Its steak product has no preservatives, additives, cholesterol or GMOs and has 25 grams of protein.
Golan said what sets his company other than other plant-based firms is that Chunk Foods’ proprietary fermentation technology has been capable of mimic the feel, color and taste of traditional meat together with the direction and thickness of the fibers and juiciness of the cut. It is usually doing this with a shorter and cleaner ingredient list, void of gums and stabilizers often used to thicken and preserve the form of foods.
Its technology has also helped the corporate bring its costs all the way down to around $5 per steak, which Golan said is near the identical price as traditional beef tenderloin. The “economies of scale should not fully there yet,” as a consequence of also having to import to the US.
Like other firms on this industry, Chunk Foods is in its early stages. It began its pilot phase within the fourth quarter of 2022 and remains to be pre-revenue, though its steak product is already being served in Recent York City restaurants, including Coletta, Anixi and The Butcher’s Daughter.
Chunk Foods is deploying the brand new funds right into a recent facility in Israel, which Golan touts might be “one among the most important plant-based whole cuts factories on the earth.” It is anticipated to be accomplished in June, and once it’s, will give you the chance to fabricate “thousands and thousands of steaks” per 12 months, Golan added.
As mentioned, the corporate just isn’t yet selling its products, but has closed on enough pre-sales that Golan said will keep the brand new facility busy initially for a few months. Funds may also be used to expand its current worker base of 25, with the R&D in Israel and industrial team within the U.S. There’s also one other, even larger, facility within the works as Chunk Foods eyes retail.
Meanwhile, the plant-based meat alternative industry has undergone a roller coaster ride previously 12 months between layoffs at Beyond Meat and Not possible Foods, each among the many first generation of firms within the industry, production woes felt by Oatly and other setbacks.
Addressing the speculation that the tip of the plant-based alternative protein was near, Golan noted that what happened was that tens, if not tons of, of firms got here out with products on this area rapidly to grab a chunk of the market, often with products that “weren’t adequate.”
Even with its layoffs earlier this 12 months, Golan pointed to Not possible as an organization that has been capable of grow rapidly because the plant-based market moved slowly. In 2023, Not possible launched 4 recent products, including three plant-based “chicken” products and a leaner version of its “beef” product.
“Some firms should not going to exist for very long,” Golan said. “They’re going to be either absorbed in other firms or they’re going to vanish. The third generation of plant-based firms are offering a greater product and are leading the pack. Chunk is with them for the time being. Our products are more affordable for the offering and we communicate higher with our consumers.”
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