Impossible Plans to Go Public Within 12 Months, Report Says

(Bloomberg) -- Impossible Foods Inc., the maker of the eponymous soy-based meat alternatives, is planning to go public in the next year, according to a Reuters report.

The faux-meat maker is exploring either an initial public offering or a merger with a so-called blank-check company, also known as a SPAC deal, according to the report, which cited people it didn’t name. The move would value the company at around $10 billion or more, according to the people it didn’t name.

A spokeswoman for the company declined to comment to Bloomberg.

The news shouldn’t come as a surprise to the market, with Impossible mentioning potential paths to public markets previously. When asked about an IPO in August, its then Chief Financial Officer David Lee told Bloomberg News that the company “will not forgo any strategic options.”

Once a hard-to-find item available at only expensive, trendy eateries, Impossible products are now on menus at national chains including Burger King. Fast-food chains have fared significantly better than independent restaurants since the pandemic began, giving Impossible an added boost. It has also been growing its grocery presence, cutting its suggested retail prices by 20% at U.S. grocery stores in February in its ongoing push to compete with real beef.

Rival Beyond Meat Inc. went public in May 2019. Beyond shares briefly pared gains after the news. They were up more than 3% at 3:17 p.m. in New York.

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