Since its founding in 2017, Meati Foods has been on a mission to raise awareness of mycelium by bringing the ingredient to consumers’ plates with products, such as Classic Steaks and Carne Asada.
The company says that it is not within the “plant-based” space.
“What I’m trying to get done is get mycelium as its own category, so we can grow into it, and give consumers another category to manage,” John Bortells, Meati’s new chief commercial officer, said in an interview with sister publication Food Dive. “My goal is to make sure that customers don’t bring us down with the plant-based performance that has happened over the last few years.”
Bortells has been in the food and beverage industry for 36 years and got his start at Pepsi. “Growing up in Pepsi really taught me how to compete against the No. 1 player in the category, which was then Coke,” he said. “I’ve always been that No. 2 player that is hungrier than its competition.”
After nearly two decades at Pepsi and working his way up to vice president of sales, Bortells went on to work at the Mighty Tea Leaf Company, Clover Sonoma and the A2 Milk Company where he worked to create an entire new category in specialty milk.
“People had no idea what A2 milk was, designed to help lactose-intolerant consumers enjoy dairy products, and we created that subcategory of specialty milk,” Bortells said.
What makes mycelium different, he said, is it’s not a plant, it’s a fungi and the ingredient itself is a complete protein made up of iron, fiber, B vitamin and zinc.
Getting messaging right
Last month, Meati Foods was named in a putative class action lawsuit alleging it falsely advertises its products as being “made from mushroom root.”
Plaintiff Serena Caldeira, a consumer in California, alleged that “Meati products are not made from mushrooms roots, nor are they made from any part of a mushroom ... Specifically, the main ingredient in Meati products is Neurosporo Crassa, a red mold that commonly grows on bread.”
Mycelium is actually a root-like structure of a fungus that resembles the shape of a mushroom under a microscope.
Following the filing, CEO Phil Graves told Food Dive the company is “going back to our roots,” literally, and that “many years ago, mycelium was not a household name. It’s still not today, but its awareness is growing, and the category is gaining momentum with consumers.”
“When you see our mycelium through a microscope, and you see the fruiting bodies, and there are technically tops of the mushrooms, whether it’s mushroom roots or mycelium or mycoprotein, it's a new category,” Graves said.
In the first few months of his role, Bortells is prioritizing nailing down the messaging of the brand. “We are mycelium that is the root system underneath what grows out into the Earth. So for example, we’re not the apple, we’re the tree and the root system of the apple,” he said. “And we have to talk that way.”
It may be intimidating for consumers to eat from an entirely new category, which is part of the challenge for Meati Foods.
“In nature, mycelium is its own kingdom,” Graves said. “And we just have to teach people to eat from another kingdom.”
Competitors of a new category
Though the mycoprotein company does not want to be grouped into the plant-based category, Bortells said the company has that space to thank for how far Meati Foods has come.
“I’m not here to bash the plant-based industry at all because I think they’ve really created a runway for us,” he said. “The plant-based arena’s success has allowed us to even have a conversation with customers.”
Besides being its own category, Meati Foods said another factor that helped set itself apart from plant-based players is its clean ingredient deck.
“We don’t have a long list of garbage ingredients that you can’t pronounce like our competitors,” Graves said. “We have products that are 95% on average, mycelium, but over time, we want to continuously improve our products and get down to the bare minimum of ingredients possible. ... We keep an eye on what others are doing — and plant-based and fungi-based and animal-based — but our role is to bring this product to market and drive trial.”
Forty percent of Meati Foods’ consumers have never tried plant-based alternatives before, something the company sees as a positive sign.
With higher prices compared to conventional meat and concern over processed ingredients, plant-based meat and seafood sales declined in 2023 for the second year in a row, according to the Good Food Institute’s State of the Industry report.
Meati Foods sees the latter half of the issue as something that mycelium can solve.
Next phase of growth
With Bortells’ appointment, Meati Foods is ready to step into its next phase of growth, the company said.
“We’re in a high-growth phase, and we not only were looking for someone that has the skills to help build the brand and make Meati a global household name, but importantly, they care deeply about the mission,” Graves said. “When I got to know John, I got to know his passion for creating new categories, and he wants his next stop to be a place where he can make a lasting impact of the work that he's doing and I know it’s cliche — but where it leaves the world a better place.”
In terms of what is next in its innovation pipeline, Graves said the company is looking to get the ingredient deck of certain products down from five, to four to three, and let the mycelium stand on its own.
“When you have a product that is pure and simple and it tastes better than what you’re used to, that’s a sweet spot to be in from an industry standpoint,” Graves said.
Less than a month on the job, Bortells said he has a few set priorities going forward. “I first plan to tell the story of the brand, then make sure the company has the right products and packaging — without confusing the consumer,” he said. “I’ll then make sure we are going into the right channels of business and spending the right kind of money. Lastly and most importantly, I’ll make sure the company has the right team of people.”
