Secret of These New Veggie Burgers: Plant Blood
Secret of These New Veggie Burgers: Plant Blood – Patrick Brown, a 60-year-old Stanford University professor turned first-time entrepreneur, says he has found the secret to replicating the taste of red meat: plant “blood.”
On a recent afternoon in his company’s expansive laboratory, Mr. Brown poured a deep-red liquid into a plastic cup. The thin concoction looks like blood, has the same distinct metallic taste, and is derived from the molecule found in hemoglobin that makes blood red and steak taste like steak.
Mr. Brown, a biochemistry scientist known for his genetic research, says “Livestock is an antiquated technology.” Impossible Foods is part of a wave of well-funded startups seeking to replicate meats, eggs, cheese and other animal-based foods with plant matter. Their aim is not only to upend the trillion-dollar animal farming industry but to also create a more sustainable source of food amid mounting environmental pressures.
According to Mr. Brown, “The system that we use today to produce meat and cheese is completely unsustainable,” he said. “It has terribly destructive environmental consequences.”
Impossible Foods and other similar startups have received funding from companies like Microsoft, Khosla Ventures, and Google Ventures. The company has its manufacturing facility in Redwood City, CA.
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