Impossible Foods, a US-based company developing plant-based foods that look and taste like meat, has raised $75m in funding from investors including internet company Google, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.
Google, which invested through its Google Ventures corporate venturing subsidiary, has been joined among the company’s investors by Khosla Ventures, Horizons Ventures and Microsoft founder Bill Gates. The company operated in stealth mode until this week.
The brunt of the cash has been used to fund a facility in California where Impossible Foods conducts research on which plant proteins can be used to replicate animal-sourced food like meat, eggs or cheese.
Impossible Foods is one of several start-ups working on sustainable animal product substitutes, though it is among the first to gain subsstantial funding from a corporate backer.
Modern Meadow, which is developing artificial leather and meat products, raised $10m in June from Horizons and Artis Ventures, while plant-based product maker Hampton Creek, which has also secured funds from Horizons, is reportedly raising a $50m series C round.