Impossible Foods launches a chicken substitute in US restaurants

Impossible Foods on Tuesday tossed its meatless chicken seeds to restaurants and announced plans to bring the new offering to supermarkets later this month.

In the last decade, chicken has surpassed beef as the best meat option for Americans, making it a target for companies like Impossible looking to replace or reduce animal meat consumption. The Impossible Chicken Nuggets helps the company catch up with rival Beyond Meat, which launched chicken tenders at American restaurants this July, more than two years after abandoning its original alternative to chicken.

Impossible meatless seeds use soy as a source of protein. However, unlike their meatless burgers and sausages, the seeds do not contain hemp, which is produced from genetically modified yeasts.

Although Impossible has secured approval from the Food and Drug Administration to sell products made with the additive in the United States, China and the European Union have banned their products because of this ingredient, assuming a reverse their global ambitions.

To convince consumers to try the plant poultry alternative, Impossible announces the environmental and health benefits of nuggets. Based on preliminary estimates from Impossible, the nuggets use approximately 48% less soil and 43% less water than chicken nuggets and generate more than a third less greenhouse gas emissions. . According to the company, Impossible seeds contain 40% less saturated fat and 25% less sodium than a chicken seed.

Restaurant chains that will offer the poultry alternative include Chef David Chang’s Fuku, Fat Brands ’Fatburger and Dog Haus.

Fuku CEO Alex Munoz-Suarez said in an interview that approximately 30% of consumers who responded to their satisfaction survey asked for a vegan or vegetarian option on the fried chicken menu.

It’s also a continuation of the relationship between the two companies, as Momofuku Nishi of Chang was the first restaurant to debut at Impossible Burger in 2016. Munoz-Suarez said Fuku tried Beyond’s chicken alternative as to pie a meatless sandwich, but he thought his shape was too perfect, pushing him to stay with Impossible as a partner.

Walmart, Kroger and Albertsons are among the grocery stores that will bring chicken-free seeds to their frozen aisles in late September. Over the next three months, Impossible plans to have chicken substitute at more than 10,000 grocery stores across the country. The suggested retail price is $ 7.99 for approximately 20 nuggets.

This is a much faster timeline than the latest release of Impossible, their meatless sausage. The company introduced the meatless pork alternative to restaurants across the country in June 2020. More than a year later, it brought the sausage to grocery stores.

Impossible has been investing heavily in increasing its research, development and production to keep up with demand and attract investors. Reuters reported in April that the company is preparing to go public at some point in the next twelve months through an initial public offering or a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company or SPAC. According to reports, Impossible is seeking a valuation of at least $ 10 billion, a few million dollars higher than Beyond Meat’s current market capitalization. To date, Impossible has raised $ 1.5 billion from private investors.

Impossible Foods is a four-time CNBC Disruptor 50 company that ranked No. 24 on this year’s list.