UPDATE Nov 4: Exclusive: Mass layoffs at Meati after weeks of payroll glitches
Fungi-fueled alt meat co Meati has experienced repeated payroll challenges over the past few weeks with some staff at the Colorado-based firm now refusing to come into work until they are paid, AgFunderNews has learned.
According to five employees we spoke to, the issue began on September 26 when pay checks usually administered via ADP every two weeks did not materialize. The money was then wired several days later. The same thing then happened again on October 10, with paychecks delayed, but landing in bank accounts a few days later. However, employees we spoke to today (Nov 3) say they are still waiting for pay that was due on October 24.
“Originally the excuse was that someone in our parent company ‘missed an important payroll email when we migrated services [from Microsoft] to Gmail [Google], but it’s been a different excuse every week,” said one employee. “The latest explanation is that cash is getting swept whenever it’s posting to company accounts due to an ongoing lawsuit.”
Another added: “The first time it happened I think one person said they wouldn’t come in until they were paid. This time, a lot more people are staying home as they need to figure things out.”
Another employee told us: “The running joke is that at least when we were in the throes of bankruptcy [earlier this year] we were getting paid. Everybody I know here is applying for jobs.”
InvenTel CEO Yasir Abdul, who heads up a vehicle that acquired Meati earlier this year, has not communicated directly with employees since the summer, leaving Meati’s HR director Benjamin Hatch and plant manager Gavin Larsen to field inquiries from frustrated employees, said staff we spoke to. Abdul has not responded to requests for comment from AgFunderNews.
One employee added: “It’s an absolute mess. Some people feel like they are being held hostage. We’ve been reassured we still have healthcare, but he [Yasir Abdul] has said absolutely nothing [directly] to staff since July.”
AgFunderNews has not been able to find records of new litigation vs Meati beyond a Mechanic’s lien foreclosure (25-cv-31479) on the Thornton factory filed in September by Process Piping of Colorado. This was filed vs Emergy Inc (dba Meati Foods, the tenant); Canadian Imperial BK Commerce Inc (the lender) and 25 North Investors SPE1 LLC (the landlord) regarding $117,048 in unpaid work.
Rollercoaster ride
Meati—which makes mycelium-based whole cuts via submerged fermentation—has been on a rollercoaster ride in recent years.
According to our sources, staff had been more optimistic about the company’s future at the beginning of the year despite several rounds of layoffs given distribution gains, a new product, and revenue growth in key retail accounts.
One told us: “Morale under [previous CEO] Phil [Graves] before March had gotten significantly better, probably the highest it’s been in years. We were coming out with new products, there was a light at the end of the tunnel. We felt like we had really open management.”
However things started to go downhill in late February when Meati breached a financial covenant tied to revenue and gross profit, what’s known in banking as a technical default, and lender Trinity Capital swept two-thirds of its available cash.
It was then forced to issue a WARN notice to staff in March explaining that production would cease on May 6 unless it could secure additional funds.
On May 2, Emergy Inc (doing business as Meati Foods) filed an Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors (ABC) agreement with the Adams County District Court (case 2025-CV-030671). The ABC process serves as an alternative to bankruptcy, whereby a financially distressed company transfers its assets to a third-party (in this case an attorney called Aaron Garber) who handles the sale of the assets/business in the best interests of creditors.
During that process, infomercial exec Yasir Abdul acquired the company for a reported $4 million, although we were told by alt protein investor Ryan Bethencourt in June (who was brought on to assist with the transition) that this figure was “not accurate.”
Abdul has not provided any further details, although BusinessDen references a May court filing which said that as part of the deal, he was assuming the company’s existing tax liens and all obligations to Trinity Capital Inc, which was owed $13.5 million as of that month.
‘There are people in the office today but we are not producing anything’
While the business remained operational as Meati navigated the ABC process, many key staff left amid the ongoing uncertainty. However, some new employees were hired in July and August, which suggested that things might return to a more even keel, said one employee.
“We had lost a lot of people with the ABC process so we brought on a few new people, probably somewhere in the range of eight and 10. And I think these people are really upset about the situation that they found themselves in, they’re really upset about the lack of communication.”
The employee added: “At first, everything seemed to be going fine. He [Abdul, who is based on the east coast] came to the plant a few times, presented himself pretty nicely and said he wanted to get to know the product and who worked here. But come September, he just kind of felt very removed.
“Antony [Evans from Wild Earth, who worked with Ryan Bethencourt on the transition] was pretty communicative but since September 26 [when the first paycheck was delayed], we have not had a clear, exact answer as on pay.”
Right now, said the employee, “People are in group chats begging for answers and there’s a lot of uncertainty, so a lot of people are trying to jump ship. It’s kind of just been like, Oh, you’ll get paid tomorrow, you’ll get paid in a couple of days.
“There are people in the office today but we are not producing anything.”
Asked about Abdul’s plans for the business, which was supplying several thousand stores earlier this year, another employee added: “Yasir was really pushing the direct to consumer business, which is relatively new. He also wanted to do a ground product, which is not 100% mycelium, but includes some soy.”
Right now, said the employee, Meati has eight fermenters at the facility in Thornton, Colorado, but is only operating two of them.
Biomass fermentation
Founded in 2015 by engineers Dr. Justin Whiteley and Dr. Tyler Huggins, Meati has sought to differentiate itself in the meat alternatives market with a fungi-based submerged biomass fermentation platform capable of producing whole cuts of alternative meat from mycelium.
A high-profile player in the space with over $375 million in funding from backers including Grosvenor Food & AgTech and Prelude Ventures, Meati had secured listings in more than 7,000 stores including Kroger, Whole Foods Market, Meijer, Sprouts and Wegmans.
Further reading:
Infomercial exec Yasir Abdul emerges as prospective buyer for Meati as firm navigates ABC process
Breaking: Meati plans “gut-wrenching” mass layoffs amid “bank-induced crisis”
Meati expands distribution, anticipates positive gross margins by the year end, says CEO
