OCTOBER 2017 FORBES ASIA | 23REUTERS/BECK DIEFENBACH
FORBES ASIA
FAUX MEATHeme on Rye?
A veggie burger could be the solution to Asia’s food-security dilemma.
S
eventy-five million dollars for
veggie burgers? That’s what Sin-
gaporean sovereign wealth fund
Temasek invested in Impossible
Foods, a virtually unknown Cali-
fornia company that is trying to change the
paradigm of the global food system.
Even though its burger product is plant-
based, it smells, cooks, tastes and even bleeds
like the real deal. On social media the hashtag
#impossibleburger has been trending. Last
year celebrity chef David Chang was the first
to introduce the product to his Momofu-
ku Nishi menu. Today the faux ground beef
(made from something called “heme”) can
be found in 44 restaurants across the U.S.
and is expected to be in hundreds in a few
months. “We believe we created a consumer
movement that we need to fulfill,” said David
Lee, COO and CFO of Impossible Foods.
(See p. 34 for a taste of real beef.)
Temasek is not the first Asian compa-
ny to express interest in the meat substi-
tute. Li Ka-shing was also an early investor
in Impossible Foods. Series D funding came
from UBS Wealth Management in Asia as
well. So why are such savvy investors bet-
ting on a product not even available in the
region? “We look for opportunities to sup-
port growth across our portfolio,”
says Paul Ewing-Chow, associate di-
rector of public affairs at Temasek.
“This includes technology pioneers
and disruptors, and in the case of
Impossible Foods—food security.”
Singapore has limited arable
land. Less than 1% of the island na-
tion’s GDP comes from domestic
food production. It devotes its re-
sources to growing produce, with
little livestock farming. Consequent-
ly, the population’s diet is almost en-
tirely dependent on imports.
Neighboring China faces a sim-
ilar dilemma. It has 1. 3 billionmouths to feed but only 7% of the world’s
arable land. President Xi Jinping has said
that food security is an eternal challenge
for the country. Adding to the pressure is
the growing demand for a “rich-country
diet,” which means more animal protein
and dairy. Rabobank estimates China’s im-
ports of beef, pork and poultry will increase
steadily in the coming years.
China spent $43 billion earlier this year
to purchase Swiss seed company Syngenta.
The acquisition by state-owned ChemChina
marks the largest acquisition ever of a for-
eign business. The deal will ensure the na-
tion doesn’t run out of rice and noodles to
feed its people, but more importantly it en-
sures there’s plenty of grain to raise the ani-
mals needed to meet the demand.
Impossible Foods offers Singapore,
China—and the world at large—a green
way to feed people. Cattle farming puts tre-
mendous strain on the environment. In
contrast, production of Impossible burger
patties requires 9 5 % less land and a quarter
of the water, while yielding only an eighth of
the greenhouse gases compared with those
created by beef patties, according to the
company. “They’re strategically seeing the
opportunity that serving sustainable foodcreates,” said Lee about Temasek’s invest-
ment. The former Del Monte Foods exec-
utive adds: “The market we’re addressing is
very relevant for the emerging middle class
and growing economies of Asia.”
What is Impossible Foods’ secret? The
company uses heme, a biochemical com-
pound that is abundant in meat but is also
present in greens, seeds and grains. A com-
ponent in hemoglobin, it’s a flavor cata-
lyst and the ingredient that gives meat its
red color. Deodorized coconut oil is used
to mimic the natural fats so that the patties
sizzle and caramelize to form a crust when
cooked. “We chose to be radically transpar-
ent [with our ingredients] because that’s just
the way we roll,” Lee said.
Impossible Foods does have a timeline
for Asia, but it hasn’t been disclosed. Right
now its operation out of Rutgers Food Inno-
vation Center in New Jersey produces 8 ,000
pounds of plant-based “meat” each month,
not nearly enough to meet domestic de-
mand in the U.S. The company has been
working to launch a facility in Oakland,
California, set to open in the fall, which will
increase supply by 25 0 times.
Just like the real stuff, the ground beef
substitute can be used in a variety of ways:
for Bolognese sauce, meat loaf, tacos
and even raw tartare. New interpreta-
tions have already made it into Asian
dishes such as spicy mapo tofu, crispy
lettuce cups and Moroccan “cigars”
(similar to Chinese spring rolls).
While still in the works, Lee points
out that Impossible Foods also has the
platform to create pork, chicken, fish
and dairy alternatives. They’re just sim-
ply not available to consumers yet. His
latest taste test? “I tried our product as
ground pork in dumplings.” The idea is
to suit local tastes. “For Asian consum-
ers, we’ll serve it the way they want it,”
Asian dishes, such as dumplings, are next on the menu. Lee says.FBY PAMELA AMBLER