The Impossible Burger, from food technology company, Impossible Foods, is a plant-based “beef” patty that cooks, smells, tastes, and even “bleeds” like real meat (thanks to an innovative combination of wheat and potato protein, coconut oil, and heme, an iron-rich compound). Thanks to its realistic taste and appearance, it is one of the most sought-after plant-based burgers on the market. The Impossible Burger launched just last year at higher-end restaurants in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco and the demand keeps growing. Continuing to expand, the Impossible Foods can also be found at Bareburger, a U.S. restaurant chain. And now more exciting news!

Fatburger, a legendary restaurant chain in Southern California is adding the “burger that bleeds” to five of their Los Angeles-based locations. The plant-based burger will come with all the standard burger fixings and joins Fatburger’s other meat-free options: the Gardenburger and the vegan Boca Burger patty.

The Impossible Burger can easily be made vegan by removing the mayonnaise and ordering it without the bun but on a “fry boat” (a bed of fries) or as a “Skinnyburger” (two Impossible Burger patties serve as the bun). 

The overall plant-based food space is now currently worth around $5.2 billion and doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon. Impossible Foods just recently announced a $75 million dollar investment to construct a new production factory in Oakland, California. They also recently hinted that vegan seafood could be in the cards next!

What’s more, the Impossible Burger, like other plant-based meats, is also environmentally superior to conventional burgers. According to the company, their burger uses 99 percent less land, 85 percent less water, and emits 89 percent less greenhouse gas than traditional beef production. Considering the animal agriculture industry is responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than the entire transportation sector, these are not just impressive statistics, they are characteristics of a product that may just save the planet.

At a time when more people than ever are cutting back on meat consumption, the plant-based Impossible Burger is giving consumers something that has been missing up until now: a meatless option that is practically indistinguishable from the real thing. We’re looking forward to more great things from Impossible Foods!

To learn more about the environmental impact of our food choices as well as trends and developments in the plant-based food space, check out our podcast #EatForThePlanet with Nil Zacharias.

All image source: Impossible Foods