Dive Brief:
- The two and a half year legal battle between Impossible Foods and Motif has come to a close. In a joint statement issued by the three parties — including Ginkgo Bioworks, which was added as a defendant during the litigation — the companies said that under the terms of the agreement, Impossible Foods will take over Motif FoodWorks’ heme-related business.
- Impossible Foods initially sued Motif in federal court in March, 2022 saying Motif’s Hemami ingredient infringed on at least one of its patents. Motif then filed a petition with the Patent Trial and Appeal Board challenging the validity of the Impossible Foods patent.
- The new agreement doesn’t allow either side to renew any allegations or bring the issue back to court, marking the end to the legal battle, according to the dismissal order filed yesterday in Delaware District Court.
Dive Insight:
The latest decision officially buries the hatchet between Impossible Foods and Motif.
The new agreement reaffirmed that all parties are on a united front when it comes to advancing innovation in the plant-based meat category.
The case has been a heated one. At one time, Motif accused Impossible of hiring private investigators to obtain info about Motif’s products. The court found that this did not violate rules of professional conduct.
Impossible Foods’ heme protein ingredient is identical in formulation to soy leghemoglobin, while Motif FoodWorks’ Hemami heme protein is identical to bovine myoglobin, which is found in the muscle tissue of cows.
Motif launched its Hemami ingredient in late 2021, a few months prior to the beginning of the legal battle .
Impossible makes its own plant-based heme, and its signature taste and color are one of the key elements that set its products apart from competitors, the company claims that its plant-based meat products bleeds like the real thing, and recently rebranded to reflect that quality. Motif’s Hemami was the first widely available ingredient with a similar function.
Since launching Hemami as a standalone ingredient — and after this legal dispute began — Motif has launched finished plant-based meat products for foodservice.
“This resolution affirms Impossible Foods’ category leadership and the strength of its product portfolio related to heme,” the statement said.
The company’s CEO has repeatedly expressed his confidence in the company’s position within the struggling category.
Last month Impossible opened its first brick and mortar foodservice concept called Impossible Quality Meats, which was meant to be a physical manifestation of the brand.
“I think this whole category has been over intellectualized, and in some cases politicized, and in some cases it’s been partisan, and it’s been very heavy,” said CEO Peter McGuinness in a previous interview with Food Dive.
“We stand behind our food. We know it’s delicious and nutritious, and so consumers are smart. They’re going to choose the better choice.”
