Impossible Foods' Legal Blitz Leaves Investors With Nothing But Empty Plates

In a bizarre twist of corporate warfare, Impossible Foods, the once-hyped darling of the alt-meat industry, appears to have squandered investor resources in misguided legal crusades with its valuation crashing from a $7.5 billion Series H peak in late 2021 to just $1.5 billion as of May, according to PM Insights.

With U.N. support, and an FDA „Climate-Friendly” fast-track, the ultra-processed alt-meat behemoth easily raised billions from backers such as Bill Gates, Hollywood elites, and Temasek.

According to early reports, the company had been preparing for a public offering that could have valued it at $10 billion or more.

Appearing unstoppable, the company began throwing its weight around. Doubling down on a potentially catastrophic miscalculation amid consumer rejection of ultra-processed meat alternatives, the company’s legal battles with Impossible X and prior food-tech rival Motif FoodWorks are turning stomachs.

First up is the trademark showdown with Impossible X, a scrappy fitness outfit founded by Joel Runyon in 2010. Impossible X – which held 18 federal trademarks for „Impossible” in the decade prior to Impossible Foods’ ultra-processed patties – filed a cease-and-desist after the company attempted to register „Impossible” trademarks across its expanding range of products.

Vegan ultra runner @richroll covers the lawsuit that „Impossible Foods” filed against my company @impossiblehq (https://t.co/9MHF3huPb2) pic.twitter.com/f1K64k2ZF8

— Joel Runyon (@joelrunyon) December 17, 2024

Beyond the traditional category of „plant-based meat substitutes,” Impossible Foods is claiming their trademark extends to all edible categories.

According to the U.S Patent Office, Impossible Foods has now filed nearly 50k trademarks in category 029 alone, „foodstuffs of animal origin.” While this category does not include plant-based food products, as one might expect, it speaks to the broad nature of the company’s trademark claims.

Those claims became the company’s basis for trademark superiority, as the alt-meat giant clapped back with a declaratory judgment suit—taking aim at Runyon personally.

Now, Impossible Foods is gunning for the fitness company’s pre-existing federal trademarks as well, in what some have said „comes across as an elitist asshole move.”

Covering the lawsuit, vegan influencer Rich Roll and co-host Adam Skolnick, equate the actions of Impossible Foods as bullying, while criticizing the company’s actions as being antithetical to winning hearts and minds.

Runyon, taking to X, called it a „David vs. Goliath” fight, accusing the „multi-billion dollar processed foods company” of trying to „steal” his brand and bury his small business under legal fees.

This legal saga is an example of an „ethical company” being really scummy behind the scenes. The fake meat bros tried to cancel a pre-existing trademark held by a small business owner and endurance athlete. Impossible Foods is run by lowlifes! https://t.co/v6MmwJNuKE

— Cernovich (@Cernovich) October 22, 2024

The 9th Circuit revived the case in 2023, and as of March 2025, it’s still grinding through the courts. X users like @Cernovich smell blood, labeling it a classic case of a corporate bully flexing its muscle to squash a minnow.

Then there was the patent brawl with Motif FoodWorks in 2022. Impossible Foods sued Motif in Delaware, alleging their HEMAMI ingredient—a heme protein mimicking meat’s flavor—infringed on Impossible’s prized patent.

Motif fired back, claiming the patent was invalid and their product distinct, while slamming the suit as a „baseless attempt to stifle competition.” Allegations of using lawfare to monopolize the alt-meat sector – projected to hit $450 billion by 2040 – were waived off.

However, since the lawsuit ended with Impossible Foods acquiring the smaller start-up – taking both its intellectual property and expertise in producing HEMAMI – X has exploded with concerns over the corporate monopolization of the food industry.

Who is Motif Foodworks? Is there anything that Bill Gates does not have his hands in? Will there be anything we consume that is NOT synthesized?

In addition to the launch of Joyn Bio launched by Gingko Bioworks, they have also launched Motif Foodworks on its platform for cell… pic.twitter.com/PV1E6A8tvA

— QuestionIt (@Amy31129057) June 5, 2023

While Impossible X’s Runyon faces existential threats from legal costs, should Impossible Foods plow its way through Runyon, the case – set for trial this coming November – could have profound impacts on future trademark laws.

Either way, the optics are brutal: a once $7.5 billion giant suing a small fitness brand and taking over a smaller rival as the result of litigation, all while losing billions amid a sector-wide downturn.

Runyon’s X posts, dripping with defiance, resonate with those who have grown disillusioned by big food monopolies—viewed as eliminating consumer transparency, trust, and ultimately choice.

Now, as the alt-meat bubble deflates – just look at Beyond Meat’s market capitalization collapse – …

… Impossible Foods’ legal fiasco stands as a cautionary tale of overreach. However, the question still remains: will this merely be remembered as a strategic blunder, or the final nail in the coffin for the „eat ze bugs” frankenfood revolution?

Our bet is that clean, back-to-basics food (MAHA) isn’t just a trend — it’s a national effort for surviving the 2030s.