Robert Downey Jr. backs vegan steak in $15 million funding round

Legendary actor turned investor Robert Downey Jr. has backed vegan steak brand Chunk Foods.

The biotech company, which uses fermentation technology to create whole-cut meat alternatives, recently bagged a staggering $15 million in its latest funding round.

It says the money will help with the completion of its factory – which will have the capacity to ‘manufacture millions of steaks annually’.

An undisclosed amount of the funding came from FootPrint Coalition – a financing company founded by Downey Jr. Other investors include Fall Line Capital and The MIT E14 fund.

Chunk Foods’ vegan steak is currently being served as New York City restaurants Coletta, Anixi, and The Butcher’s Daughter, with a national roll-out across the US planned for later this year.

Solid state fermentation

To create a vegan steak with a realistic meaty texture, Chunk Foods uses soy flour and food-grade microorganisms instead of protein isolates typically used to make mock meats.

Through a process of solid state fermentation, the brand is able to finely tune the texture of its products down to the thickness of the fibres to give them a meaty bite.

“The unique thing is our ability to control the micro-texture within the whole cut, to the point where we can control the direction of the fibers, the thickness of the fibers, the thickness of the cut, the size of the cut, the color, almost any lever you can pull to change the character of the final product,” explains CEO Amos Golan.

“We also don’t use any binders or gums, but the product is still super juicy, and holds water and fat very well, until they are released in your mouth, so you get a juicy, mouthwatering experience. It’s completely different to tempeh.”

“Prior to investing, we worked with several top-tier restaurant groups and trialed the product in their test kitchens,” Steve Levin, partner at FootPrint Coalition, told AgFunder News.

“There was unanimous praise for the product – not just in terms of taste, texture and ease of preparation – but also in the list of ingredients. The product hits all the marks.”

Robert Downey Jr.’s plant-based investments

Chunk Foods isn’t the only plant-based brand to receive backing from the Iron Man actor.

The actor formed the Footprint Coalition back in 2019 with the mission of building the world’s most sustainable paper, ending global deforestation, and finding plastic alternatives.

Downey Jr. invested at least $10 million of his own money into the Footprint Coalition, an environmental initiative that aims to save the planet.

Robert Downey Jr. has also invested in US plant-based start-up MyForest Foods which makes vegan bacon from mycelium.

Using his investment fund Footprint Coalition Ventures, Downey Jr. was one of several investors who helped the business secure $40 million.

This investment will fund a commercial-scale production of mycelium in the world’s largest aerial farm, planned for erection in New York.

Additionally, Downey Jr. recently made an investment in Motif FoodWorks, a food-tech company working to manufacture “craveable” vegan foods.

Is Robert Downey Jr. vegan?

While the actor turned entrepreneur isn’t very vocal about his plant-based diet, he is extremely passionate about the environmental and health impacts of animal products.

Downey Jr. adopted a plant-based diet back in 2020 in a bid to improve his health and lower his carbon footprint, announcing he was going vegan “for legumes”.

Speaking about his plant-based diet at a movie premiere, Downey told Variety that “I make faces for cash and chicken. Even though now, I’m off chicken. I’m going plant-based!”

Robert Downey Jr. isn’t the only celeb trying to make the world a better place. Check out all of these vegan celebrities making veganism trendy!

Featured image: Taylor Hill via Getty Images