NEW YORK — Chunk Foods, a maker of plant-based products that mimic whole cuts of meat, is aiming to add scale.
For Chunk Foods, going beyond replicating the basic burger, chicken nugget, or hot dog in a plant-based application is how it differentiates. Chunk’s product line includes a 4-oz steak, a 6-oz steakhouse cut, and a pulled meat product. Its products are formulated from cultured soy, wheat protein and fortified with B12 and iron.
“What we’ve been able to do is create a product that’s structured,” said Amos Golan, founder and chief executive officer of Chunk Foods. “It resembles a muscle tissue with the ‘fibrosity’ of a steak, the juiciness of steak, the structure, the color, the flavor. It’s a very well-defined texture while still maintaining clean label ingredients.”
To make its products, the company uses solid state fermentation, a process that begins by adding a starter culture of natural microorganisms, such as bacteria, yeast or fungi, to a damp substrate such as cooked rice, milk, meat, or even coffee beans. The substrate is then left in a warm and humid environment to allow the organisms to grow, Golan said.
“At the heart of the process we added some patented processes that we’ve developed to give the feeling of fibers,” Golan said. “We don’t use any gums and stabilizers. We add water, some natural flavors, color and fat and those are released from the product very easily. It becomes a very juicy product that gives a nice mouthfeel similar to beef.
“During the growth process, commonly referred to as fermentation, the organism grows into the substrate and excretes different biomolecules that change its flavor, texture and nutritional profile. In the case of food, it makes the food tastier, like yogurt or sausage, more voluminous or ‘fluffy,’ like bread, less bitter or more complex in flavor, like coffee and cocoa, or just breaks down starches into sugars and alcohol, like sake, or complex umami sauces, such as with soy sauce.”
The company recently raised $7.5 million in a seed funding round led by Cheyenne Ventures. The funding raised the company’s total funding to $22 million. Chunk also partnered with Better Balance, a maker of plant-based meat and dairy products formulated from pea and soy protein, to develop a new range of plant-based whole cut meats. Through the partnership, the co-branded products will be available for foodservice in Mexico.
“The reason we raised money is to accelerate our launch into the US,” Golan said. “We want to be able to hire the commercial team faster and make sure they have the resources they need in order to launch this nationwide as soon as possible.”
Golan said the company currently operates a facility in Israel with its R&D teams housed there as well. Its commercial teams are based in the United States.
“Right now we’re just focusing on foodservice,” Golan said. “Retail requires a little more work on the brand. We would need to be more well known among the average American consumer to be recognized as an item that’s not necessarily on the weekly shopping list like other items.”Enjoying this content? Learn about more disruptive startups on the Food Entrepreneur page.
