Dive Brief:
- Following the successful launch of is plant-based burger, Beyond Meat has launched Beyond Sausage, a plant-based alternative to pork sausage made with pea protein isolate, coconut oil and sunflower oil.
- Engineered to mimic the flavor, texture and shape of pork sausage, Beyond Sausage has no cholesterol, more protein, less sodium, less total and saturated fat, and fewer calories than its animal-based equivalent. The product also is free of hormones, nitrates, soy and gluten.
- Beyond Sausage has launched exclusively at a Whole Foods Market in Boulder, Colorado with additional locations to be announced in January.
Dive Insight:
With the successful launch of its plant-based burger alongside traditional ground beef products in more than 5,000 grocery stores and 4,000-plus restaurants just eighteen months after it launched, Beyond Meat is now adding a sausage to its lineup.
Plant-based foods experienced 8.1% growth in sales during the past year. Plant-based meats alone accounted for 2.1% of sales in refrigerated and frozen meat products sold at retail, according to Nielsen data during a 52-week period ended in mid-August. Beyond Meat is right in the mix as more consumers gravitate toward plant-based foods and beverages.
“There is a revolution going on in the plant-based meat space,” said Bruce Friedrich, executive director of The Good Food Institute, which commissioned the study. “Right now, the sector is small, but growing, and we are working hard to create a viable market sector.”
As a leader in the plant-based meats category, Beyond Meat is positioning itself to continue to introduce products that move the company forward into new areas. While traditional meat alternatives such as textured vegetable protein have been marketed to vegetarians and sold in bags on the shelves of health food stores, Beyond Meat is inking deals that bring its products into the meat department of mainstream supermarkets such as Whole Foods, Kroger, Publix and Safeway.
"As a category leader in plant-based meat alternatives, Beyond Meat has revolutionized how consumers get their protein," said Red Elk Banks, vice president of Whole Foods Market's Rocky Mountain region.
With its latest offering, Beyond Meat has brought to market a product featuring a proprietary mix of pea, fava bean and rice protein with coconut oil and beet juice developed to mimic the look and feel of pork sausage. Thanks to the rapid success the company has had with its burgers, it already has an established customer base and network of retailers and restaurants that will be more than willing to give its new sausages a try — saving the company precious time of having to enter new markets and convince skeptical shoppers.
“I see it as an advance in our team's relentless march toward a perfect build of meat from plants," Ethan Brown, CEO of Beyond Meat, said in a statement. "Though we aren't there yet, I'm encouraged by the progress we've made with Beyond Sausage and look forward to hearing what the consumer thinks."
The company's latest round of financing will enable it to continue developing new products. Privately-owned Beyond Meat has raised $55 million from high-profile investors, including meat processor Tyson Foods, which recently increased its ownership stake in Beyond Meat from 5% first established a year ago.
Beyond Meat also offers plant-based chicken strips, and this fall announced a deal with Sysco, the nation’s largest food distributor, that may bring its plant-based meats to tens of thousands of restaurants, hotels, healthcare facilities and schools in 2018.
The question now is whether consumers will eat up the new sausages? If the new faux-meat is as successful and tasty as its Beyond Burger, it could be a sound decision for the California company to add the product to the menu.