Will China Buy America’s Fake Meat?
Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods have plans to woo China’s omnivores, but it could be a hard sell.
In the Wangjing neighborhood of Beijing, ZeroGo is one of the city’s few vegan restaurants. It offers pizza, protein bowls and Asian-fusion fare, and online reviews rave about the menu's creativity, which includes a vegan Big Mac, complete with vegan cheese and dairy-free special sauce. The “burger” is made from scratch, an original, pea-based recipe.
If the American fake-meat darlings Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods have their way, chef Raymond Xie will soon be able to use their meatier patties. The problem is, he doesn’t want to. “I want to use real fruits and vegetables,” he said. “Not products made with the intention of being a direct meat substitute.”