How Mushrooms Are Replacing Cows At Colorado’s New Vegan ‘Mega Ranch’

February 6, 2023 –
From Plant-Based News

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A new cattle-free “mega ranch” that manufactures mycelium (mushroom-based) protein for plant-based meat has just opened in the US.

The factory is owned by Colorado-based company Meati. It will reportedly be able to produce millions of pounds of vegan meat every year. This is due to Meati’s claim that its methodology is scalable to a vast capacity.

The alternative meat producer goes as far as to say that it can create the vegan equivalent of “hundreds of cows’ worth of food” in just a matter of days, using only a teaspoon full of mycelium cells.

The mega ranch is part-funded by a $150 million funding round completed in 2022.

Meati Meati creates realistic vegan alternatives

“We always understood that evolving the food system would take more than a few thousand pounds of Meati from our Pilot Ranch. It would take millions. Tens of millions. Hundreds.

“But to do that, we’d need to make a first-of-its-kind, mega-big facility to grow oceans of mushroom root,” Meati wrote in a company blog.

“Building it hasn’t been simple, but our Mega Ranch is close to starting up.”

What will Meati’s new facility produce?

The vegan mega ranch is located in Colarado — Meati The vegan mega ranch is located in Colorado in the US

It’s said that the new factory will be able to produce 45 million pounds of meat a year when fully up and running, which should be towards the end of this year.

The mega ranch will grow mycelium before processing it into meat alternatives that are consumer-ready. These will then be sold under Meati’s Eat Meati brand.

To date, the company has created plant-based cutlets (which frequently sell-out), steak, and carne asada.

From vegan ranches to high fashion: mycelium’s rise to prominence

It has been suggested that mushrooms offer potential for widespread sustainable change.

Mycelium, the intricate network of roots connected to mushrooms, is a particularly versatile material. Alongside Meati, a number of plant-based meat manufacturers are using mycelium to replicate the texture and taste of animal protein, at a fraction of the environmental cost.

Similarly, fashion companies are experimenting with swapping out animal leather for a mycelium alternative that can be grown in resource-aware conditions. Stella Mccartney notably launched a range of luxury handbags made from mycelium.

Source: Plantbasednews.org