Mycelium Meat Brand Meati Appoints Former General Mills Executive Scott Tassani As President

Boulder-based startup Meati has announced the appointment of former General Mills Chief Customer Officer, Scott Tassani, is joining the company as its new President. The move comes ahead of 2022 consumer launch plans, with Tassani pegged to assist with the rollout. The transition will be completed on December 6.

Earlier this year it was reported that Meati had secured $50 million to build new premises. The 80,000 square foot factory has been designed to maximise production of proprietary mycelium whole cuts. Tassani is joining the company during a period of change and optimism.

Big ambitions

Meati has revealed big plans. It aims to be the first company to bring mycelium whole-cut meat alternatives to market in 2022. It also plans to announce $1 billion in annual sales by 2025.

“When creating a new and exciting category, the strategic partnerships that deliver on all fronts is critical, and I couldn’t be more excited to welcome Scott to the team and partner with him to bring lasting change to the broader protein category,” said Meati co-founder and CEO Tyler Huggins in a statement. “I’m already blown away by the trust and relationships he brings, which will enable a new level of speed for Meati to be more widely available.”

A road map for success

While announcing Tassani’s appointment, Meati also made clear its plan for success. Starting with direct-to-consumer online availability, products will then be rolled out to retailers. Chicken breast, steak, and jerky were all in final stage development earlier this year.

Freshly funded, Meati will be aiming to complete its new facilities ahead of market release. The large production plant has been earmarked to produce “millions of pounds of food”. Not hyperbole, as Huggins has previously revealed that Meati is a super resource-efficient product. In its stainless steel fermentation tanks, the company can grow the meat equivalent produced by 4,500 cows every 24 hours. 

Realistic meat analogs are increasing. Alongside Meati, New York-based Atlast Food Co. has secured funding to develop its own fungi-based whole-cuts. With its MyBacon already in the market, progressing to bigger cuts was a natural next step. One that Robert Downey Jr, is supporting via his Footprint Coalition Ventures. 

Europe is making moves too, with Libre Foods currently pushing through final development and approval stages. Working with mycelium, the company hopes to master bacon before moving onto the holy grail of meat-free products; a realistic steak alternative. Though steak was intended to be the first release, it became clear that more time would be needed to perfect the flavour and texture. Libre’s bacon is due to come to market in early 2022.

All images courtesy of Meati.