Impossible Foods, a California-based plant-based meat developer, had its EU patent no. 2,943,072 B1 (‘072) revoked by the European Patent Office (EPO), while Motif Foodworks, filed four additional challenges to the US  patents held by Impossible Foods.

Both the revoked EU patent and the challenged US patents (US11,224,241, US11,013,250, US10,039,306, US9,943,096) are related to the use of heme protein in the production of alternative meats. Motif has long argued that this is not patentable claiming this ingredient has been used in the production of alternative meats for decades and was not “discovered” by Impossible Foods.

While the rationale behind the revoking of the EU patent has not yet been published online, according to Motif it shares similarities with the US patents under dispute. On the other hand, Impossible Foods has claimed the EPO decision has no bearing on the validity of its US patents.

Analyst QuickTake: The dispute between the two alternative meat producers began in  March 2022 when Impossible Foods sued Motif Foodworks over patent infringement. Impossible Foods heme protein is based on soy leghemoglobin while Motif’s hemami protein is similar to bovine myoglobin, which is produced via precision fermentation. Earlier this year, Impossible Foods had to launch its products in the UK without the inclusion of heme due to not having received regulatory approval from the EFSA. Since heme protein is a key selling point of Impossible Foods, if Motif is successful in its challenge, Impossible might be left in an unfavorable position.