Lypid, a San Francisco-headquartered food technology startup and marketer of alternative fat, has partnered with Louisa Coffee, the largest coffeehouse company in Taiwan, to serve plant-based burger patties at over 500 shops across the island. Featuring Lypid’s proprietary vegan PhytoFat, the patty delivers the taste, texture and mouthfeel experience of animal meat. Six menu items are currently being offered, including sandwiches, rice burgers, muffins and bagels.
“In the current market, ‘fat’ is the missing ingredient in the majority of plant-based meats. Vegan oils used today simply melt and leak out of the food matrices due to lower melting points,” said Dr. Michelle Lee, co-founder and chief technology officer of Lypid, “With our PhytoFat, we are bringing the secret sauce back.”
Made out of 97% vegan oils and water, the product maintains its animal fat-like qualities when cooked above 329°F (165°C), enhancing the texture and flavor delivery of plant-based meat. PhytoFat also provides a better nutritional profile, allowing a reduction of both calories and saturated fat compared to animal fat.
“We are thrilled to work with such an incredible partner to bring delicious alternative food to our daily life and show the infinite possibilities that PhytoFat can offer for sustainability initiatives. This is an amazing achievement for our efforts in advancing the plant-based movement,” said Dr. Jen-Yu Huang, fellow co-founder and chief executive officer of Lypid. “With the early success and highly positive feedback from consumers, we aim to take our innovation to more channels in the following months.”
The two principals at Lipid, Taiwanese Ph.D.s who met at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, have raised $4 million in seed capital led by the Green Generation Fund, with additional support from Big Idea Ventures, Foodland Ventures, SOSV’s IndieBio and others. They are targeting additional markets in Asia as well as the USA and Europe.
