What I saw was more so Beyond’s answer to the ubiquitous cardboard-packaged Bubba Burger: those cheap, thin, greasy patties that dads grill up in the dozens for block parties, which cook fast and go down easy with ketchup, and that you wouldn’t dream of ordering any way other than well done. The idea, Brown’s publicist Shira Zackai says, is to make something that competes with the trend of thinner, smaller smash burgers. The company also says it improved the taste-though I had trouble telling the difference in the one Chef D set down in front of me. Pricing info isn’t available, but a company representative says they’ll be cheaper per patty than the original burgers, since they’re smaller. Called the Stack Burger, it’s thinner, and it’ll exclusively be sold in the frozen section starting later this summer. Instead, the company’s latest and greatest imminent offering is… another Beyond Burger. The formula also might change between now and then-what I tried, he says, was a prototype. It’s not launching in the near-term either-all Brown would promise was that it would hit shelves sometime next year. But the method by which Brown and his company contort those elements into their “steak” is strictly under wraps. It’s got fava beans in it, and mycelium-the thin root-like tendrils that mushrooms and other fungi form as they grow, and which binds together soybeans in tempeh, a vegetarian staple. Read more: We Tasted The World’s First Cultivated Steak, No Cows Requiredīrown is cagey about how this new “meat” is constructed. Whereas past months have seen Brown on the defensive, the arrival of this steak is reminiscent of the bold Beyond Meat founder of yesteryear-that messianic enviro-capitalist who put veggie burgers in the meat section, who wanted meat-eaters to choose his patties, and put the world’s top food scientists to work to make it happen. The imitation is a lot more convincing than other steak alternatives I’ve tried. It can be any form,” he says as I take a third bite. Brown couldn’t help but break the illusion, though. It gets an A+ for a nifty caramelized crust. It had some of the consistency of a piece of meat, though it put up a bit less resistance to the fork. Maybe not like a steak steak, but a reasonable facsimile to be sure. In October, the company laid off 19% of its staff, and it’s also seen three high-profile C-suite departures.Ĭhef D sets down three slices of it in front of me, accompanied by a dab of mashed potatoes and a tiny pool of steak sauce. Instead, global sales numbers fell almost 10%. The company posted a loss of $366 million last year-though that wouldn’t be so bad if burning that cash had pushed Beyond products onto more menus and dinner plates. From a supernova IPO peak of $234 per share in 2019, Beyond’s stock price is down to just $15.81 as of July 20. that started it all, has fared particularly badly in some ways, especially compared to its biggest rival, Redwood City, Calif.-based Impossible Foods (it helps though, that Impossible is a private company, which means it can keep its financials close to the chest). More than a dozen startups in the space have folded in recent months. High food prices have caused shoppers to forgo expensive meat alternatives, while cooling hype and high interest rates have tightened the spigot of venture capital that fuels the industry’s smaller players. It’s rougher out there than it was during the plant meat glory days. You just have to be comfortable with both.” “When you’re struggling, it’s the opposite. “When you’re doing well, they make you seem like you have the Midas touch,” he says, speaking in a hotel room in Midtown Manhattan last week. Instead, there’s only one question on the minds of financial analysts and business journalists: Can Beyond Meat actually make money? Brown has had plenty of time to think about the dynamic. Today, Brown still has the same talking points-environment, health, animal welfare-but fewer people seem to be listening.
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