Gone are the days when Boca Burgers were your best bet for something that seemed a little like meat but wasn’t. Today, alternative animal proteins are so popular that even fast-food chains like KFC and Burger King have gotten into the game by offering Impossible and Beyond Meat versions of their traditional meat-centric menu items. There’s so much interest (and money to be made) in this space that startups are innovating alt-meat options like crazy, and one of the most promising branches of this movement involves mycoprotein, or "meat" made from mushrooms.

This development may seem like NBD given that it’s 2022 and you’ve probably had, say, a portobello burger or shredded shiitake taco by now. But these startups aren’t just slapping whole mushrooms between carbs and calling it a day. Instead, they’re cultivating mycelium, the root-like fibers of fungi from which mushrooms grow, to transform them into various types of alternative meats.

Most alt meats are made from plant proteins, which must be isolated and modified before they start to resemble a meat-like product, but mycelium can sub in without quite as much engineering due in part to its neutral flavor and muscle-like texture. To make mycelium meat, brands start with a specific type of mycelium, which varies by company. Proprietary processes are then used to essentially ferment the mycelium using sugar and other nutrients. Once it has been cultivated, some flavoring, coloring, and even breading may be added to make the final product more meat-like. Pure mycelium, however, remains the main ingredient, which is part of what makes this form of faux meat appealing—mushroom roots are super healthy.

“Many of the things that make mushrooms an attractive food are true about mycelium—after all, mushrooms are literally made of mycelium,” says mushroom-tech company Ecovative’s cofounder and CEO Eben Bayer. “That means many of the nutritional benefits are the same.” Mycelium is high in fiber, and several of the companies working with it as an alternative food source say their mycelia are complete proteins that contain all the amino acids and nutrients of meat, too. And it’s no slouch in terms of flavor, either. Bayer says cooked mycelium has “a natural umami,” or savoriness, and that it can grill and brown in much the same way as a standard piece of animal protein.

This innovative form of alt meat isn’t just helping to keep animals alive and humans healthy; it’s good for the planet, too. “The advantages of mycelium are many. No animals are harmed, much less land and water are needed in its production, and the environmental impact is essentially nil compared to animal agriculture,” says Bayer. It’s also more efficient to create mycoprotein than it is to create animal protein or many plant-based protein products, which means that fewer resources can be used to feed a greater number of people. Mycelium meat company Nature's Fynd, for example, says their mycelium is about 130 times more efficient to grow than beef in terms of protein per acre. This is partially due to the fact that mycelium can be grown in a much shorter time frame than it takes to grow most vegetable crops or raise livestock.

Production of this miraculous-sounding meat substitute is still at a fairly early stage, but there are big names, such as Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, invested in bringing it to market. Keep reading for intel on some of the companies cultivating 'shrooms for steaks, nuggets, bacon, and more.

Five Companies Working Hard to Make Mycelium Meat Happen

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Prime Roots

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Prime Roots sources its “meat” from koji mycelium, which looks a lot like muscle fibers when viewed under a microscope and takes just two to three days to grow. You’re likely acquainted with koji, even if unwittingly, as it’s been an essential ingredient in Japanese and other Asian cultures for centuries and is used to make miso, soy sauce, and sake, among other things. Four slices of the company's nutrient-dense plant-based bacon contain four grams of fiber and no cholesterol, whereas the same amount of regular bacon contains no fiber and about 35 milligrams of dietary cholesterol. Prime Roots also recently introduced deli cuts of “turkey” and “ham,” differentiating itself from competitors focused on star-of-the-show proteins like beef patties, chicken nuggets, and steaks. The brand's products aren’t currently available for purchase, but the company promises they’re coming to consumers soon.

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Meati Foods

Backed by celebrity chef Tom Colicchio of Top Chef, Meati Foods serves up plant-based steaks and cutlets made from mushroom mycelium grown organically indoors and then seasoned with all-natural herbs and spices. According to the brand, Meati Foods’ process produces a quantity of “meat” equivalent to 4,200 cows every day and requires less than one percent of the water necessary for conventional meat production. At present, Meati’s nutrient-dense meat substitutes are a bit hard to get your hands on, but the company is currently sending out small batches to folks who sign up online as they work towards wider distribution.

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MyForest Foods

MyForest Foods makes a product called MyBacon using Ecovative’s AirMycelium technology to grow mycelium slabs that are sliced into strips with a deli slicer and then seasoned with a clean-ingredient recipe.“Many people say they'd give up meat if not for bacon, so having an option that's better for their health and that is environmentally and ethically sound without any cost in terms of delicious taste is a game changer for the industry and consumers alike,” says Bayer. “Current meat alternatives are ground up or extruded products with ingredients you have never heard of. They just can't compete with the texture and chew of the bacon alternative MyForest is bringing to market.” MyBacon is available for limited purchase now at the Honest Weight Food Co-Op in Albany, but its production (and availability) is set to increase exponentially once its farm—which the company says will be the largest mycelium farm in the world—opens this summer.

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Nature’s Fynd

Nature’s Fynd is one of the flashiest mycelium meat makers as it’s backed by big names, such as Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, and Al Gore. The company utilizes a protein-rich mycelium microbe discovered by NASA in Yellowstone Park, which is cultivated through an innovative fermentation process that results in a complete protein with all 20 amino acids. It grows in thin sheets that can be transformed into almost anything, including products resembling meats like pork and chicken. Starting this month, inaugural products from Nature’s Fynd will be available in select Whole Foods markets in a handful of states.

Mycorena‍

Sweden-based Mycorena has created an alternative mycoprotein ingredient called Promyc that can be used in the formulation of food products. The company says Promyc is naturally high in protein and has a fibrous texture that works well as a substitute for animal protein. In collaboration with some of Sweden’s biggest brands, the company has transformed Promyc into sausages, meatballs, and nuggets that are available at grocery stores and restaurants throughout the country, and they have plans to expand internationally as well. Also in the works: a mycelium-based fat replacement designed to make all alt meats taste better.