Start-Up Introduces Meat Free Cheeseburger

The argument has been made for years that animal farming is not only incredibly harmful to the environment, but that it’s also unsustainable. Veggie substitutes have been developed that, while the intentions are good, simply don’t live up to their meat counterparts. California-based Impossible Foods, however, is hoping to change that, and they’re starting with an All-American staple – the cheeseburger. 

Led by former Stanford biologist Pat Brown, Impossible Foods is comprised of a team of 80 other scientists, engineers and chefs. Brown’s mission with this project is not merely to come up with a substitute that cooks, sizzles, and smells like “the real thing”, but rather to “spark a new paradigm shift in the way we create and eat our food.”

“We are not trying to make a meat alternative,” says Brown, speaking to The Financial Times, “We are making meat a better way.”

Brown and his team’s “way” is through resynthesizing plant matter. They separate specific proteins, fats, amino acids, and vitamins from vegetables, beans and grains and then reconfigure them based on the flavor and texture they give. The result is a meat-free product which Impossible Foods claims tastes and feels just like an actual cheeseburger.

Impossible Foods aims to have these meatless burgers on the market by 2016. In the mean time they have already secured $150 million in funding and have been in talks with Google, Bill Gates, and a number of capital venture firms.