Impossible Foods founder Pat Brown is taking a leave of absence from the plant-based meat company, Insider has learned.
Brown's leave started this week, according to an email sent to staff and shared with Insider by two employees. He is expected to return to the company in March 2023, according to the email, which did not give a reason for the decision.
Projects that Brown had been working on will be put on hold until he comes back to the company, including Impossible Labs, an innovation arm that Brown has spearheaded for less than two months.
A spokesperson for Impossible did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
Brown's leave marks his latest professional move at Impossible over the last eight months. In September, he stepped down as chief science officer to lead Impossible Labs. The news followed Brown stepping down as CEO in April. He handed the role to Peter McGuinness, a veteran of Greek yogurt maker Chobani and alum of multiple advertising agencies.
Brown had served as CEO of Impossible since he founded the company in 2011.
Impossible employees have told Insider that McGuinness has brought more business experience to the CEO role. At the same time, some of his ambitions for the company, such as one day running an ad during the Super Bowl, seem far-fetched, employees said.
In October, Impossible laid off 6% of its staff, a move that McGuinness said at the time would allow it to "hyper grow," according to an email seen by Insider. In addition, many of Impossible's top executives have departed this year.
