Impossible Foods Donates Its Millionth Burger to Fight Food Insecurity

This week, plant-based company Impossible Foods hit a milestone when it donated its one millionth Impossible Burger to Alameda County Community Food Bank, a longtime Impossible Foods’ partner. Impossible Foods launched its food donation program three years ago in San Francisco and ramped up its efforts through its Social Good program throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to distribute meals in an effort to fight growing food insecurity, particularly in Black and Brown communities. 

Getting to one million
In July, Impossible Foods partnered with Know Your Rights Camp, an organization founded by vegan football player and social justice activist Colin Kaepernick to empower Black and Brown communities. Through the partnership, Impossible Foods donated plant-based burgers that Know Your Rights Camp distributed at its events in California, New York, and other regions.  

“As food insecurity and the consequences of environmental degradation disproportionately affect Black and Brown people worldwide, it has been a highlight of 2020 to partner with Impossible Foods to feed over a million people,” Patricia Robinson, spokesperson for Know Your Rights Camp, said. “We’re proud of this work and intend to grow our partnership in 2021 to continue to address the rights of youth to good food and good health.” 

In addition to Kaepernick’s organization, Impossible Foods’ million-burger mission was achieved through partnerships with other organizations such as NFL player Isaac Rochell’s Local Human, Black Lives Matter of Greater New York, Rethink Food and SodexoMAGIC—the nation’s leading dining service provider chaired by NBA legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson. 

Earlier this year, Impossible Foods also worked with Atlanta’s Slutty Vegan on a national campaign to help Americans register to vote. Currently, the company is supporting Feeding America food banks through its “Buy Impossible Burger, Give Impossible Burger” campaign. Until December 31, for every Impossible bundle (which start at $49.99 plus tax) purchased through its direct-to-consumer website, Impossible Foods will donate the equivalent—up to 100,0000 Impossible Burgers—to Feeding America food banks. 

2021 and beyond
Impossible Foods is doubling down on its charitable efforts in the year to come and plans to expand its Social Good program to serve communities that experience the intersection of food insecurity, racial injustice, and unequal access to nutritious foods, particularly children. 

In addition to fighting food insecurity, Impossible Foods CEO Patrick Brown is focusing on eliminating animals from the food system by 2035 and replacing them with plant-based alternatives. “Our mission is to completely replace the use of animals as a food technology by 2035. We’re dead serious about it and we believe it’s doable,” Brown said during a recent conference. “I was confident that we would succeed when I launched this company, and now I’m completely confident. It’s game over for the incumbent [meat] industry—they just don’t realize it yet.”