Originally Posted by Bosa

Since 2015, global meat giants from Tyson to Cargill have invested in high-momentum, animal-free protein startups seeking to upend the traditional meat industry.

Though not a new concept, meat substitutes have become all the rage lately with VCs pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into the space.

Some newer entrants, such as Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat, use ingredients like pea protein & heme and target channels like fast food to convert regular meat eaters.

Meanwhile, startups using technology to engineer meat in labs are rising in popularity and racing each other to market.

Leading meat producers are building up a portfolio of investments in insects, plants, and lab-grown meat. Cargill has backed lab-grown meat startup Memphis Meats (Aug’17), pea protein producer PURIS (Jan’18), and Calysta (Feb’16 and May’17), a company designing methane-based proteins.

Tyson has invested in Memphis Meats (Jan’18) and Beyond Meat (Oct’16 and Dec’17), and most recently announced an investment in Israel-based clean meat startup Future Meat Technologies (May’18). Additionally, poultry conglomerate PHW backed lab-grown chicken startup SuperMeat (Jan’18).

Most recently, in April 2018, leading Canadian deli meat producer Maple Leaf Foods invested in Entomo Farms, a cricket and meal worm protein producer.