Motif Foodworks Tests Direct-to-Consumer Sales

Plant-based food tech company Motif Foodworks announced today that it will begin selling its finished alt-meat burger products direct-to-consumer for a limited time, representing a pivot for the company which has previously stated that its business plan is focused exclusively on supplying finished plant-based goods to wholesale and foodservice operators.

“We have no plans to become a D2C company long-term, but we are planning a launch into foodservice later this year with our finished products,” said a spokesperson for Motif in an email to NOSH. “This [D2C launch] will help grow and expand our business capabilities while giving a platform to showcase our taste and texture ingredients… We are still driven by our B2B business model and at our core we are still a leading developer in breakthrough ingredient technology that makes plant-based foods more delicious.”

Dubbed Motif BeefWorks, the plant-based burger patties will be available online through Motif’s website in 4-packs for $12. Earlier this year, the company opened its new R&D and ingredient production facility and announced it would expand its offerings with for-hire bioprocessing capabilities intended to help other startups in the plant-based space scale their manufacturing. According to Motif, the driving force for this limited branded product launch stemmed from consumer demand.

“When we sample our products at tradeshows and events, the number one question we are asked is ‘Where can I buy your product?’,” said Mike Leonard, Motif FoodWorks’ CEO, in a press release. “That’s why we are excited to offer people a way to try our products at home and taste the delicious experience created by Motif’s ingredients.”

Founded in 2019 as a spin-off from biotech company Ginkgo Bioworks, Motif has raised nearly $345 million to-date, which includes a $226 million round in 2021 led by the Ontario’s Teachers’ Pension Plan Board through its Teachers’ Innovation Platform (managed by BlackRock) AiiM Partners, Wittington Ventures, Rethink Food, Rage Capital and Rellevant Partners, among others. The company used the capital to commercialize its hero heme ingredient as well as build its new production facility.

In late 2021, the company received a patent for its bovine cell-based heme protein, known as HEMAMI. Rival alt-meat maker Impossible Foods, which uses a heme protein derived from soybean nodules to make its alt-meat products “bleed like meat,” subsequently sued Motif in March 2022, claiming the company infringed on its intellectual property rights and created unfair marketplace competition by producing a similar, heme-containing alt-meat product.

Motif fired back by filing complaints against Impossible’s patents while defending itself against allegations of unfair competition by claiming the two companies operate with different business models. Executives at Motif have previously told NOSH that the company is focused on becoming a B2B alt-meat product supplier and intended to scale the operation by delivering the technology that improves alternative protein products rather than launching its own branded line of products.

While the case between Impossible and Motif is still ongoing, both parties filed sealed requests regarding a “Case Narrowing Dispute” to the judge late last week. Motif’s initial challenge to Impossible’s patent was rejected by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in November; however the company then filed four additional petitions against the patent in December.

This article has been updated with comment from Motif Foodworks.