A new Brazilian startup is using artificial intelligence to create vegan burgers.
CEO Marcos Leta founded Fazenda Futuro, which translates to “Future Farm,” just over a month ago following visits to the U.S. to learn from companies like Beyond Meat. He has developed the burger, named The Futuro Burger, in collaboration with The Good Food Institute, a nonprofit organization that promoted the advancement of plant-based food.
The first product to be released by the company, the burger is made from pea, soy and chickpea protein. Fazenda Futuro promises the burger will have “the taste, smell and texture of meat, without the animal protein.”
Similar to the Beyond patty, beetroot juice will provide the look of a medium-rare burger, reports Startse. It’s not just the physical characteristics that are comparable; the burger will also be nutritionally equal to a regular beef burger.
Leta said of the product’s development, “we want to show that it is possible to revolutionize the food industry without causing a negative impact on the environment.“
He added, “My goal is simple: evolve with new [versions] of meat and [in the end produce] vegetable meat that’s eventually cheaper than the original.”
The Rise of Plant-Based Meat
The new product launch follows in the footsteps of brands like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat.
The Good Food Institute reported that “Fazenda Futuro aims to revolutionize Brazilian conceptions of plant-based meat and satisfy meat-eaters while bypassing the animal intermediary.”
The announcement also marks a growing change in Brazilians attitudes towards meat.
The country is known for its meat production and is the world’s second largest producer of beef followed by the European Union according to the Brazilian Times.
There are multiple environmental benefits of reducing meat production, especially for Brazil. Companies regularly raze large sections of the Amazon rainforest in order to increase grazing land and feed-crop fields.
The University of Michigan conducted a study of the lifecycle of a Beyond Meat Burger which showed these benefits. It reported that producing a Beyond Burger “uses 93% less land and 99% less water and causes 90% fewer greenhouse gas emissions than producing a conventional burger.”
The Futuro Burger will be available from May, in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, at a suggested price of BRL 16.99 (about $4.5 USD).
This content was originally published here.
