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Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

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Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#71

Post by PrimalPower »

Grimblewald wrote: post #11

I always wondered who their demographic was. The core early adopters, the ethical vegans, who actually like the taste of plants are never going to make a lab made ultra processed salt bomb their daily driver (never mind issues surrounding industrial agriculture). Health-conscious folks would take one look at the ingredient list and bail because of the heavy processing and industrial fillers. You've got bodybuilders a…

There’s plenty of vegetarians due to ethical or cultural reasons that never acquired the taste for traditional plant based foods and are looking for a more substantial, protein heavy alternative.

Is it niche? Yes, but vegetarians were always niche.

While the late 2010s fixated on “protein” and “macros” - allowing products like Beyond or Soylent to shine.

Much of the health discourse around the 2020s has focused on quality of the ingredients and “processed foods”. So naturally Beyond is caught on the crossfire.

Is there a future where this stuff is proven to be better for you in the short and long term? I sure hope so. But there’s way too many unknowns right now and it’s expensive to boot.

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#72

Post by thewebguyd »

legitster wrote: post #68
3rodents wrote: post #7

I disagree with the idea that it's "not the moment for plant-based meat". Beyond Meat has a fantastic product that does very well in lots of markets. The problem is that Beyond Meat the company was valued as some sort of once in a generation radical reimagining of the way we eat. Beyond Meat's product is not going to change the world, it's just a good product. If Beyond Meat had grown organically, instead of raising…

I have the opposite reaction. Beyond Meat is not a good product. It tastes gross. It's not as good as the meat it's comparing itself against, and it's not as good as the vegetarian options also available in the store, and it's more expensive than either. Anytime can "be the moment" for plant-based meat if the product technology was there, but it's not.

> it's not as good as the vegetarian options also available in the store

I've tried the beyond burgers, they were alright taste wise, but yeah there's many other options for a protein source.

Beyond Meat was never going to convince people to eat less meat by substituting it for fake burgers and steaks. For people that already eat vegetarian there already tastier sources of protein. Lentils, beans, quinoa, chickpeas, mushrooms, nuts & seeds, etc. All of those have much more flexibility with how you can incorporate them into dishes than a fake slab of "meat."

> more expensive than either.

This is a political problem. In the US animal agriculture receives far more funding than plant-based protein. Without government subsidies, a pound of ground beef would cost closer to $30-$40. We've historically defined food security int he US as "meat and dairy," two of the things we really need to consume less of because of environmental impacts.

But yeah, Beyond Meat wasn't going to get us there. We need real political changes, not fake meat.

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#73

Post by thewebguyd »

delecti wrote: post #63
Grimblewald wrote: post #11

I always wondered who their demographic was. The core early adopters, the ethical vegans, who actually like the taste of plants are never going to make a lab made ultra processed salt bomb their daily driver (never mind issues surrounding industrial agriculture). Health-conscious folks would take one look at the ingredient list and bail because of the heavy processing and industrial fillers. You've got bodybuilders a…

> The core early adopters, the ethical vegans, who actually like the taste of plants are never going to make a lab made ultra processed salt bomb their daily driver Why not? I think there's a false conflation of veganism and health food (and gluten-free, though that's not relevant in this discussion). I love burgers, and fried chicken, and crappy chicken nuggets, but I don't want more animals to have to suffer for my…

> IMO the core problem is that meat is so heavily subsidized that it's hard for them to compete.

This is the real problem. Without all the government subsidies, a pound of ground beef would be closer to $30-$40 today instead of the $8-$10/lb it is now. $38 billion dollars in the US each year to subsidize meat and dairy, but only $17 million goes to fruit and vegetable farmers. It's completely backwards, especially considering the climate impact on meat and dairy farming.

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#74

Post by mft_ »

thewebguyd wrote: post #72
legitster wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have the opposite reaction. Beyond Meat is not a good product. It tastes gross. It's not as good as the meat it's comparing itself against, and it's not as good as the vegetarian options also available in the store, and it's more expensive than either. Anytime can "be the moment" for plant-based meat if the product technology was there, but it's not.

> it's not as good as the vegetarian options also available in the store I've tried the beyond burgers, they were alright taste wise, but yeah there's many other options for a protein source. Beyond Meat was never going to convince people to eat less meat by substituting it for fake burgers and steaks. For people that already eat vegetarian there already tastier sources of protein. Lentils, beans, quinoa, chickpeas,…

I disagree.

I’m ~97% vegetarian but there are a few foods for which traditional vegetarian alternatives are rubbish. One of these is the burger: you either get some odd veg/potato base pattie, a large grilled mushroom, or halloumi. The meat substitute burgers aren’t close to real beef burgers, but they’re far tastier than other vegetarian options.

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#75

Post by nickff »

paxys wrote: post #15
3rodents wrote: post #7

I disagree with the idea that it's "not the moment for plant-based meat". Beyond Meat has a fantastic product that does very well in lots of markets. The problem is that Beyond Meat the company was valued as some sort of once in a generation radical reimagining of the way we eat. Beyond Meat's product is not going to change the world, it's just a good product. If Beyond Meat had grown organically, instead of raising…

Yup, the product is fine, but there's a reason all the other brands in the freezer aisle aren't raising hundreds of millions of dollars at 100x multiples. Burgers don't scale like smartphone apps. Here's a comparison - Tyson Foods, best known for their frozen meat, had a revenue of $54.44 billion last year. Their current market cap is $21.77 billion. Beyond Meat reported an annual revenue of $87.9 million in their 20…

I think that 'real product' (as opposed to software) companies would actually benefit more from raising capital from equity instead of 'bootstrapping', because of the taxes on retained earnings, which have a disproportionate impact on capital-intensive business. That said, I agree that the P/E multiple on Impossible and Beyond were best described by the descriptors in their respective names...

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#76

Post by orwin »

asdff wrote: post #65
sethhochberg wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

High-protein everything is riding the wave of GLP-1 popularity right now. Doctors are begging people on that class of drugs to chase protein targets more similar to what might have previously been reserved for heavy weightlifters just to prevent muscle wasting. As a result, the entire packaged food industry is pumping up protein numbers and marketing it as the primary attribute of the food (where they might have prev…

I hear the most ironic stuff on glp from the people I know on it. So doctor is obviously a reasonable person with an interest in making people healthy, not trying to set up glp addicts, and are encouraging better diet and increased exercise while eventually tapering and getting them off the glp entirely as the final end goal. The whole time they are telling me this I can't help but wonder what the hell is the point o…

I lost weight the regular way. You don't understand how much will I expend to not continuously eat. The strategy I deploy: I never have ready-to-eat anything home, I cook everything just before I eat it, I chose ingredients based on their satiety index, I always have something to drink. I fast 5 days every year to 'reset' my grahlin levels (it still hurts, even if it's way less than it used to). I'm still at 26 BMI, so overweight (from 33 to 28 in 3 years, from 28 to 26 in 5).

I have a very good support system. Not to brag, but my parents are amazing, my family have a small amounts of doctors who helped me getting through it at first. My siblings are great too, and my SO support me despite my quirks. I love sailing, which is a great way to loose weight. And I'm a SWE, the easiest job there is when you're not bad at it, that makes good money without real responsibilities or stress. It was still fucking hard. If glp1 can help people less lucky than me, let them have it.

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#77

Post by goosejuice »

znpy wrote: post #66
flexagoon wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Proprietary food, that you can only buy from one company Huh? Isn't that most of it, except for basic grocery ingredients?

> Isn't that most of it, except for basic grocery ingredients? Only if you live in the us.

Nevermind all of the specialty foods across the globe. Products made from basic ingredients and labeled to sell are everywhere. What exactly are you referring to?

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#78

Post by NotGMan »

jfengel wrote: post #12

That's too bad. I don't expect fake-meats to be healthy, or cheap, but I like that they can be made without killing animals and without raising them in inhumane conditions. I had really hoped that people would say, "Well, if it tastes close enough, then how about I go for the cruelty-free version." And it is close-enough -- it's at least as good as a fast-food hamburger. Perhaps the cognitive dissonance is just too m…

[flagged]

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#79

Post by malfist »

thewebguyd wrote: post #72
legitster wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have the opposite reaction. Beyond Meat is not a good product. It tastes gross. It's not as good as the meat it's comparing itself against, and it's not as good as the vegetarian options also available in the store, and it's more expensive than either. Anytime can "be the moment" for plant-based meat if the product technology was there, but it's not.

> it's not as good as the vegetarian options also available in the store I've tried the beyond burgers, they were alright taste wise, but yeah there's many other options for a protein source. Beyond Meat was never going to convince people to eat less meat by substituting it for fake burgers and steaks. For people that already eat vegetarian there already tastier sources of protein. Lentils, beans, quinoa, chickpeas,…

I disagree, I enjoy beyond and impossible beef and their sausage. I'll often (though not always) opt for it while out because I think it tastes close enough to the real deal and doesn't have the ethical concerns of real meat. I am not vegetarian or vegan, though I do sympathize with their point of view. If bean burgers actually tasted good I might occasionally get those but they're gross

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#80

Post by choilive »

PunchyHamster wrote: post #24
happytoexplain wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The way the market has moved away from valuing "just a good product" (and, by extension, "just a good service", "just a good business", and "just a good employee") is one of the factors destroying life as the developed world has known it for 80 years.

the market didn't. The investors did

Investors are not part of the market?
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