TRUE BELIEVERS.

Betting on the popularity of protein grown in a lab nstead of a farm, Israel's Believer Meats plans to set up shop in Wilson with a factory that entails an investment of more than $123 million.

The company expects to add 100 jobs at a 200,000-square foot plant at the Wilson Corporate Park that would be the largest of its kind globally. The company was founded by Professor Yaakov Nahmias in 2018 and is led by CEO Nicole Johnson-Hoffman, a former executive of major beef suppliers OSI Group and Cargill. It has raised nearly $400 million from about 20 investors, according to the Crunchbase website.

Believers proprietary process combines biotechnology and agriculture to create products with a goal of sustainability as more consumers opt for healthier foods. The system involves the use of bioreactors, which enable chemical processes that lead to alternatives to traditional farm-grown meat.

Global revenue for alternative meats, including plant-derived products and animal meat grown from cells in labs, is...