USDA-approved 50/50 beef and vegetable burger “closest to meat in terms of consumer satisfaction”

19 Mar 2024 --- At the Natural Products Expo West 2024 trade show, which was held last week in California, US, Food Ingredients First was on hand to speak to F&B innovators live from the event. One of the stand-out highlights is the BOTH burger, which the company believes “is going to change everything.”

Andrew Arentowicz, co-founder and CEO, tells us: “It’s a blended burger. We’re the first company that can actually say it’s 50/50 meat and vegetables.”

“We have seen a lot of companies use protein isolates or other ingredients that consumers can’t pronounce. But we keep it simple,” he says. 

“Our burger has six ingredients, all of which you can find in your kitchen: beef, roasted mushrooms, caramelized onions, broccoli, cauliflower and roasted garlic. So we keep a super clean ingredient profile, and we lead with taste,” he underscores. 

The company was able to go through an appeals process to be United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)-approved for 50% beef. They allowed the appeal as what we were telling them about our ingredients is factually true, says Arentowicz. 

“The approval process took slightly longer, but USDA believed in the product and this unlocks the potential for 50/50 burgers.”

Making the product 
Co-founder Stephen Theiss, also chief brand officer, tells us that the company’s goal “was to deliver on flavor,” but this wasn’t always a straightforward process. 

According to Arentowicz, there were a couple of iterations to get the end-product. “In the end, we opted for simple ingredients, which have kind of been our North Star in this process.”

There were also some issues with binding, he flags. “We had to trial and error with some ingredients and flavors to get the formulation right.”

“People feel it is a compromise, but they like the taste, so it’s a win-win. They also can feel good about what they eat, so that’s what the beauty of this is.”

“We’ve done all the hard work, so the consumer doesn’t have to,” he adds.

According to the company, its flagship product is a burger born in a kitchen and not in a lab. 

The first and only USDA-approved 50/50 burger slated as good for the heart and good for the planet.“The secret sauce is a proprietary blend of roasted mushrooms, caramelized onions, roasted garlic, riced broccoli and cauliflower that seamlessly unites with premium grass-fed Angus beef to make an incredible burger that is indisputably the best of both worlds.”

Flexitarian aspect
Arentowicz believes the company’s innovation “beats plant-based burgers” and comes the closest to meat products “in terms of satisfaction.”

“There’s a large proportion of the population that wants to eat less meat,” he notes. 

“So when they buy something like this, they may not really know that they’re not eating,” enthuses Theiss. “It doesn’t feel like a compromise.”

Edited by Elizabeth Green, with additional reporting by Jolanda van Hal, live from Natural Products Expo West, US