Among the first to introduce products made from plants that taste and cook like meat, Impossible Foods has been rapidly expanding its retail footprint. Drew Angerer / Getty
Among the first to introduce products made from plants that taste and cook like meat, Impossible Foods has been rapidly expanding its retail footprint. Drew Angerer / Getty
Among the first to introduce products made from plants that taste and cook like meat, Impossible Foods has been rapidly expanding its retail footprint. Drew Angerer / Getty
Among the first to introduce products made from plants that taste and cook like meat, Impossible Foods has been rapidly expanding its retail footprint. Drew Angerer / Getty

Plant-based burger maker Impossible Foods secures $200m in funding


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Plant-based burger maker Impossible Foods secured $200 million (Dh734.5m) in funding, less than six months after it raised the largest investment ever for a food tech startup.

It brings the total funds raised since the California-based company was founded in 2011 to $1.5 billion.

Impossible Foods, which counts Jay-Z, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian and singer Katy Perry among others as its investors, said it would use the money to expand research, develop new products and for internal operations.

Among the first to introduce products made from plants that taste and cook like meat, Impossible has been rapidly expanding its retail footprint, selling its products in thousands of grocery and retail stores in the United States, including about 2,000 Walmart stores.

The new funding round, which follows the $500m funding it raised in March, was led by hedge fund Coatue and included existing investors Mirae Asset Global Investments and Temasek as well as new investor XN, the company said.

Impossible Foods and rival Beyond Meat have struck high-profile deals with several restaurant chains, including Subway and KFC, but have had to find new strategies to stay afloat as many chains were forced to limit operations due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In June, Impossible started selling its burgers online in the US through its website after beef prices shot up as the pandemic forced several meat plants to shutter.

Profile

Company: Justmop.com

Date started: December 2015

Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan

Sector: Technology and home services

Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai

Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month

Funding:  The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups. 

The specs

Price, base: Dh228,000 / Dh232,000 (est)
Engine: 5.7-litre Hemi V8
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 395hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 552Nm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.5L / 100km

Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites

The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.

It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.

“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.

The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.

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