A meat look-a-like product made from fungus hits shelves and wins over investors as the meatless market continues to grow.
Key Details
- Meatless startup Nature’s Fynd has garnered more than $158 million from investors, including Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates.
- According to the Plant-Based Foods Association, the market for alternative foods exploded in 2020, growing U.S. sales by 27%, bringing the total market value to $7 billion.
- About 63% of U.S. consumers between ages 24 and 39 believe their nutritional needs can be fully met with a plant-based diet, according to research from One Poll.
- Natures Fynd’s products include all 20 amino acids and good levels of fiber, vitamins, and minerals, with no cholesterol or trans fats making it an excellent meat replacement.
- As the meatless market continues to expand, investors are hopping on board.
Why it’s news
In the last few years, the meatless market has skyrocketed as many consumers are switching to meatless products for both health and environmental reasons.
Meatless startup Nature’s Fynd uses a fungus called Fy that is rich in proteins to use as a meat substitute. The company makes breakfast patties, cream cheese, and other products.
Some products have been hitting the shelves at stores, including Whole Foods, while others are still in production. The company is working to make chicken nuggets and other products to appeal to meatless consumers.
Nature’s Fynd is also part of the sustainability movement. The company aims to reduce the carbon footprint of global food systems, which generate around 34% of greenhouse emissions.
“The challenge for this and future generations is to learn to do more with less,” says Nature’s Fynd founder and CEO Thomas Jonas. “Because with eight billion people, the Earth is not getting any bigger, its resources are dwindling, and climate change is making it even more difficult to find land to grow crops to feed animals. The math just doesn’t work. So, the whole goal of our new protein system is to increase the efficiency of the complete protein chain.”
The meatless industry still hasn’t gained approval from the masses, as the primary buyers are younger shoppers—63% of U.S. consumers between ages 24 and 39 believe their nutritional needs can be fully met with a plant-based diet, according to research from One Poll.
Nature’s Fynd has received around $158 million from investors in the plant-based market.
The market is expected to continue growing and is projected to take a 60% market share of global meat sales by 2040, according to consulting firm AT Kearney.
