Impossible Foods is meat, and MediaCom is the plant-based protein brands’ media agency partner as it seeks to expand its appeal to more beef-minded consumers across the country.
This week, Impossible Foods unveiled, “We Are Meat,” its first national campaign, featuring a voiceover from actor Scott Glenn. It was a bold approach from creative agency Wieden+Kennedy Portland, likely to ruffle some feathers among the more carnivorous-minded with its expansion of the term’s definition. An Impossible Foods spokesperson confirmed that MediaCom—Adweek’s Global Media Agency of the Year—was the brand’s media agency partner for the campaign, but declined to comment further on the relationship. W+K Portland has yet to respond to a request for comment.
Neither agency partnership appears to be an official agency of record appointment or an exclusive partnership. Impossible Foods also works with a few other previously-established agency partners on efforts unrelated to the national campaign, primarily on b-to-b advertising, according to a source with knowledge of Impossible Foods’ marketing practices. The creative and media agency appointments are open-ended assignments which followed review processes with multiple agencies as the brand pursued its first national campaign, according to this source, leaving the ultimate length of the relationships ambiguous.
Still, the faux-meat category leader represents a meaty assignment as a dynamic brand in a fast-growing category now appears ready to spend big on national advertising. Impossible Foods told Adweek it has made a “significant” investment in the national “We Are Meat,” campaign, which will run for around eight weeks, while declining to specify on the amount spent.
Prior to “We Are Meat,” the brand raised a considerably high profile through partnerships, and it was available as a fast food staple well before it was available in grocery stores nationally. Impossible Foods partnered with Burger King in 2019 to make the Impossible Whopper available in all 50 states. Last year, Burger King introduced the Impossible Croissant, while Starbucks introduced its own Impossible Breakfast Sandwich. Last July, Impossible Foods partnered with Colin Kapaernick through his Know Your Rights Camp nonprofit to feed underserved communities in major cities its plant-based products.
