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Impossible Foods courts family-friendly plant-based meals

Plant-based meat and poultry alternatives have faced volatile conditions in both North America and Europe, but Impossible Foods is fighting back by partnering with Disney to promote its Impossible “Chicken” Nuggets.

Plant-based meat alternative company, Impossible Foods, has rolled out a redesigned package and format, as well as updated branding for its Impossible Disney Lion King “Chicken” Nuggets.

The company says that the move “reimagines” the product, with the Chicken Nuggets coming in the form of familiar Disney characters in the new film, Mufasa: The Lion King. The launch also coincides with a promotional campaign to accompany the film’s launch.

Building on Impossible Foods’ existing Disney partnership

Impossible Foods already has an established partnership with Disney, which sees the company supplying it products to Disney properties across the US. However, the deeper partnership with Disney will now see the branded product hit retail aisles across the US.

Peter McGuinness, Impossible Foods CEO, described the move as a “natural next step” in the company’s collaboration with Disney, adding that the move also presented a novel way for both children and adults to enjoy the company’s plant-based offerings.

The nuggets are marketed as having no cholesterol, 10 grams of protein per 78 g serve, and 60% less saturated fats compared to leading animal meat chicken nuggets.

The meal launches target nostalgia and family time

In addition to the nuggets, Impossible Foods has launched two new products available in grocery stores across the US: the Meal Maker which includes Impossible Beef, available in Taco and Italian-style options; and Impossible Corn Dogs, which play on childhood nostalgia for traditional corn dogs typically served at county fairs across the US every summer.

Both of these launches are branded as ranges that can be enjoyed by children as well as adults, building on the company’s aim to make the brand more family-friendly.

Ingredients Network reached out to Impossible Foods for comment about the launches, but no reply was forthcoming.

The high price-point has been a big challenge

Plant-based meat alternative players burst on to the market about five years ago, with the product launches being met with a degree of enthusiasm by health-and environmentally conscious consumers wanting to cut down on their meat consumption.

However, what many consumers have struggled with is the price point. Plant-based meat alternatives tend to carry a high price point because of high ingredients costs and the fact that economies of scale have also been challenging for many brands to achieve.

Questions have also been raised about just how healthy plant-based meat alternatives are. With a growing movement against ultra-processed foods, some nutritional experts have gone as far as to suggest some plant-based meat alternatives can fall within this category.

Research suggests plant-based foods can lack nutrients

Research from the George Institute in Australia, found that, although plant-based meats are generally healthier, and score particularly well on fibre content, they can contain higher amounts of sugar and can also lack important nutrients found in real meat.

“Both plant-based and processed meats mostly fall into the ultra-processed category, so this raises concerns about their role in a healthy diet,” Maria Shahid, lead author of the research said.

“While we found plant-based meat products were generally healthier than their processed meat equivalents, healthier alternatives would still be lean unprocessed meats and legumes, beans and falafel,” she added.

Both the price tag and the question marks over plant-based meat alternatives have been reflected in some consumers steering away from the products. For example, a recently published report from the Good Food Institute showed that enthusiasm for plant-based meats and seafood was showing signs of falling in the US, with total sales down by 13% over the course of the past two years.