(Photo : SavorEat)
Interview with Racheli Visman, CEO and Co-Founder at SavorEat
Can you tell us a little about SavorEat and how it was founded?
The idea behind SavorEat came to me six years ago. At the time I was the COO of a MedTech company and was dealing with health issues that severely limited my diet. One day while grocery shopping, I had a vision of a robot that prepares the exact delicious meal I was craving, only healthy and aligned with my diet. After a quick Google search, I found that there is no such thing, and decided to follow my vision and transition from MedTech to FoodTech.
Founded in 2018, and launched on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange in December 2020 - SavorEat was the first-ever food-tech company in Israel to do an IPO. Powered by its proprietary "Robot Chef," the company provides a plant-based solution with unprecedented quality and personalization to the market. The diner can choose the amount of fat, protein, size, and form of preparation. SavorEat also offers data analysis about consumer preferences, the number of products left, what needs to be ordered, and more.
SavorEat's proprietary fully automated offering backed by its IoT system is isolated from the kitchen environment ensuring no contaminants, and solving significant issues such as communication with the diner, supply chain issues, and even waste. The system provides a consistent, convenient, efficient, and adaptable production solution for the food service industry.
What is the Robot Chef? Please explain in detail how it works.
The Robot Chef is a technology solution connected to IoT and big data that empowers the diner to order a digitally-manufactured plant-based food product, all by communicating with the SavorEat application. Each Robot-Chef is capable of cooking 3 different plant-based versions of the "beef" patty, with a breakfast sausage patty ("white meat") and a "turkey" patty that's currently in their final stages of development.
How does the Robot-Chef integrate within a restaurant space? Are you replacing human workers with the Robot-Chef?
The Robot-Chef is isolated from the kitchen, it can be located in the front or back of the restaurant, and can digitally cook SavorEat's products. In the future, SavorEat envisions the Robot Chef will be able to integrate and cook other "patties" as well.
SavorEat's Robot-Chef is not a replacement for human workers, but rather it brings extra solutions which reduce the necessity for labor to operate the Robot, as it is mostly self-automated and easy to operate if/as needed.
How does SavorEat's plant-based alternative compare to other meat alternatives in the space?
Companies like BeyondMeat and Impossible Meat spearheaded the first generation of plant-based alternative meat products that provided a worthy replacement for plant-based "carnivores." SavorEat takes meat alternatives a step forward by establishing the "new generation" of meatless meat made with zero human interference. We are bringing in not only the innovative technology to produce meatless burgers, but we are also providing a product that is tailored to both the consumers' and food service providers' needs.
How does SavorEat push the plant-based industry forward in terms of innovation?
The full solution is completely different in that it's not just a plant-based alternative. Rather, it is a full holistic tech solution that provides the answer to various challenges facing the food industry. From supply chain and communication with the end consumer to customer preference analysis and even giving the power of choice to the diner. SavorEat's vision is both personalized nutrition in the future, and to offer this full solution as a home device.
How does SavorEat benefit logistics for food service providers?
Anticipate and better manage supply chain issues: SavorEat's solution allows the operator to know in advance which cartridges they need to order, what runs out faster and what less, what the consumer prefers, etc. Accordingly, the operator can order cartridges ahead of time and avoid problems, while streamlining the supply chain known as one of the problematic factors in all markets today. In the future, the idea is to place the cartridge order automatically.
Waste: SavorEat's solution offers the ability for food service providers to do away with the preparation of products, refining and tailoring not only the ordering and storing process but the production as well. This dramatically reduces the number of food products over-produced, which results in mass food waste. Additionally, this also reduces the amount of individual packaging for each product, with SavorEat's solution digitally manufactured on the spot from a single packaged cartridge each capable of producing 4-6 burgers.
Preparation speed: One Robot Chef can digitally manufacture three patties in approximately six minutes! And SavorEat aims to get that to only two minutes!
Simple and easy-use: No special training is required, no need for IT manpower, no extra cooks, and no unique training to operate the Robot Chef.
(Photo : SavorEat)
What has been the reception from consumers in regards to the SavorEat unique patty?
The first commercial activity SavorEat did at the beginning of the year was with one of the leading burger chains in the Middle East; the responses received from the end consumer were very positive. The taste and texture of the patty were highly enjoyed by the diners who tried the product, and in addition, the technology and dining experience were equally so.
SavorEat's product appeals to not only vegetarians or vegans, but to flexitarians as well. With the majority of the flexitarian population between the ages of 20-40, they are more likely to associate with innovation and technology and are considered early adopters in the integrated technology sectors across industries.
What's next for SavorEat?
The company's next step is to continue focusing on growth and developing more products that offer better versions of the solution. But mainly SavorEat wants to enter the U.S. market, which is already in the pipeline to take place in the fall as part of the company's collaboration with the global company Sodexo. As part of this operation, SavorEat's solution will be offered within academic institutions in the United States, and extra collaborations in the U.S. market are to be expected. Additionally, the company is working on a number of local operations to take place in different locations within the upcoming three months; From tech offices and events to operating the Robot-Chef in a leading Burger Chain in the Middle East, and even a food truck experience, "The SavorEat Journey" touring the country.
