Beyond Meat opens new Innovation Center in Los Angeles, US

Plant-based meat substitute producer Beyond Meat has opened a new 26,000ft² research and development centre at its headquarters in Los Angeles, US.

The new facility employs around 100 people and will serve as the new home of the company’s Manhattan Beach Project.

The project has been designed to bring together scientists, engineers, food technologists, chefs and managers to support the manufacture of meat directly from plant-based ingredients.

Beyond Meat’s new Innovation Center is seven times the size of its present facility and is expected to promote the company’s ‘Rapid and Relentless Innovation’ initiative, which aims to continually develop its products until they are considered equivalent to animal proteins.

Beyond Meat CEO and founder Ethan Brown said: “The use of science and technology to build meat directly from plants, coupled with a commitment to all natural and non-GMO ingredients, is the core of our company.

“At Beyond Meat, we strive to understand meat at new levels and then rebuild it using amino acids, lipids and minerals from plants.”

The new facility is intended to deliver improvements to the marketplace on an annual basis and is broken into eight distinct labs and footprints, with a particular focus on consumer engagement and learning.

Beyond Meat Research and Development vice-president Dr Dariush Ajami said: “The new home to the Manhattan Beach Project allows us to re-imagine the use of existing technologies for a better understanding of the complexity of meat.

“The Innovation Center gives us a leg up as we apply this knowledge in our efforts to perfectly build meat directly from plant materials, using only natural ingredients and without genetic modification.”

The facility also features a test kitchen that will be used to host chefs and culinary experts.

Around 50 new jobs are expected to be generated as a result of the Manhattan Beach Project.

Beyond Meat intends to recruit scientists and engineers from universities and research centres, both in the US and abroad.