‘Impossible Burger’ Showcases Growing Market for Xanthan Gum

Coming to a restaurant near you—a meatless hamburger that “bleeds.”

Vegetarians have long looked for a meat-like food that looks like meat, tastes like meat and has other properties of meat—all, of course, without the meat. Meatless foods have met with various levels of enthusiasm, but few have the hype surrounding the new bleeding alt-meat burger.

Called “The Impossible Burger,” this new culinary creation comes from the team at Impossible Foods, which acknowledges the attraction to meat but also the fact that cows are “land-hungry, water-thirsty and pollution-heavy. That’s why we set out to do the impossible: make delicious meats that are good for people and the planet.”

Impossible Foods says they have spent five years replicating the sizzle, smell and juice of a hamburger, and recreated it using plants. Estimates say $80 million went into production and research.

The $13 Solution to Pollution and Water Waste?

Earlier this year, restaurants around the country started selling the Impossible Burger. In Pittsburgh, diners can order a $13 version with American cheese, roasted garlic mayo, lettuce, and pickles—and like the real thing, this burger can be ordered rare, medium-rare, medium, medium-well or well-done.

“The meat is made with wheat protein, potato protein, coconut oil, carbohydrates from a Japanese yam called konjac, xanthan gum, natural flavors, vitamins, and heme, a compound that allows the meatless patty to “bleed” as if it were made from real meat,” reported The Daily Meal.

One early enthusiast was New York-based chain Bareburger, whose culinary director, Jonathan Lemon, said that meatless eating is not a trend but a promise.

“The future is here and meat will play a smaller role in the years to come,” Lemon told Nation’s Restaurant News. “Bareburger is committed to not getting left behind and leading the industry in not only great burgers but plant-based offerings as well.”

So far, Impossible Burgers are available in restaurants in several states, including Texas, New York, California, Ohio, Illinois, Massachusetts and Florida, with more in the works.

Key Ingredient, Xanthan Gum, Enjoying Moderate Growth

The use of xanthan gum in meatless meat-like foods highlights the substance’s global growth. Led by the demand for gluten-free products and the increased consumption of convenience foods, the global xanthan gum market is expected to grow 5.7% annually through 2022, according to a new report from BCC Research. By 2022 its global market could top $972 million.

Currently, the food and beverage segment comprises a majority of the overall xanthan gum market, with a value expected to reach $634 million by 2022. The Asia-Pacific region, thanks to technological advancements and developing infrastructure in the oil and gas production industry, dominates the global xanthan gum market. The market for xanthan gum in the United States should rise thanks to anti-dumping duties on some imports.

While the global xanthan gum is showing moderate growth, innovation could help drive future growth, the reports adds, and leaders in the market are growing thanks to mergers, acquisitions and production agreements.

For more detailed information about the global market for xanthan gum and five-year market forecasts and CAGRs in food and beverage applications, download the report overview.