I'm not any kind of analyst or expert in the area, but I'd have thought it would be fairly simple. The products quickly reach their target market, then level off. A lot of customers try it, decide it's not worth the additional expense, and go back to plain meat.

It sounds to me as if people were confused by the explosive growth at the beginning. They opened a new sector, but it's not a tech company. It appeals to an existing market of vegetarians and vegans, and those who were trying to reduce their meat consumption, but it doesn't have network effects like a social media site.

So I feel like they should have anticipated this. They saturated the market, and then slightly contracted.

Anecdata, but I personally grew tired of the Impossible meat taste after eating it regularly for a year or so.

It seems like consumers are signaling that they prefer the taste of real meat. We can talk about Sustainability™ all day but the market will decide for itself. And it’s usually flavor that wins out.