Beyond Meat

Founded in 2009, Beyond Meat is a leading producer of plant-based meat products. The company uses a patented process to convert plant proteins into structures that physically and nutritionally resemble animal protein using a mix of peas, mung bean, fava bean, and brown rice. The company has an extensive portfolio that includes plant-based steak, ground beef, sausage, burgers, chicken (nuggets, tenders, popcorn), jerky, and meatballs.

Over the years, the company has added several new items to its portfolio, including Beyond Steak (plant-based seared tips), Beyond Burger Chicken-Style ( UK and Netherlands ), Beyond Meals, Beyond Smashable Burger Patty, the new Beyond Sausage, and the Beyond Stack Burger. In February 2024, the company unveiled its fourth-generation product line, Beyond IV, which included new versions of Beyond Burger and Beyond Beef. Further, in March 2024, the company launched a revamped and extended range of Beyond Crumbles.

As of December 2022, Beyond Meat products were available at ~190,000 retail and foodservice outlets in over 80 countries.

Key customers and partnerships

Since the launch of Beyond Burger, the company has been partnering with major quick-service restaurants such as Starbucks, McDonald’s, Denny’s, Carl’s Jr., Hardee’s, Dunkin’, Subway, and KFC to launch menu items inspired by Beyond Meat’s products to expand its presence in the US and internationally.

In May 2022 the company partnered with Chinese convenience chain store Lawson to introduce heat-and-eat lunch boxes featuring Beyond Pork which was specifically created for the Chinese market and Beyond Beef. Beyond Meat entered the Japanese market in September 2022 through a partnership with one of the country’s largest grocery store holding companies, United Super Market Holdings (USMH). In October 2022, the company partnered with Allana Consumer Products for the distribution of Beyond’s products to the Indian market. In September 2023, Beyond Meat expanded its partnership with Veggie Grill, a plant-based restaurant chain, to offer a variety of menu items featuring Beyond Steak. Later during the same month, the company partnered with German gastronomy chain Sausalitos to introduce new plant-based dishes featuring Beyond Steak, Burger, and Meatballs in 40+ Sausalitos locations. Later, in November 2023, the company collaborated with Blackbird Foods and Pizza Hut UK to supply Beyond Pepperoni for new plant-based pizzas.

Funding and financials

In May 2019, the company was listed on the Nasdaq exchange under the ticker BYND. Before listing, it raised a total of USD 122 million in funding, and its IPO was considered the most successful in 2019, with its share surging by more than 163% by the close of trading, over the offer price of USD 25.

Beyond Meat’s 2022 revenue dropped 9.9% YoY to USD 418.9 million, compared to USD 464.7 million from last year, driven by a 16.9% decrease in volumes coupled with a 4.4% drop in net revenue per pound. The company reported an EPS loss of USD 1.05 in Q4 2022 (versus a loss of USD 1.27 in Q4 2021), beating analyst expectations of a loss of USD 1.18.

Beyond Meat’s 2023 revenue guidance stood in the range of USD 375 and 415 million, translating to a decline of 1%–10%, compared to FY2022. The company expects gross margin to be in the low double-digit range, with sequential growth throughout the year. Beyond Meat’s primary business goal for 2023 is to attain positive cash flow operations by the 2H 2023.