Beyond Meat is introducing a new steak alternative with a focus on health.

• Beyond Meat is planning to introduce a whole-muscle steak substitute that closely resembles the taste and feel of a filet.
• Earlier this year, the company that produces meat alternatives from plants announced a plan to reverse its sales decline.
• Beyond aims to win back consumers who perceived its products as too processed by simplifying its ingredient lists and emphasizing the advantages of a plant-based diet in its marketing.

The company will present a whole-muscle steak option as part of its strategy to appeal to health-conscious customers.

On Wednesday, CEO Ethan Brown announced that the rollout will likely involve a partnership with a restaurant chain known for serving healthier food, marking a departure from its previous strategy of collaborating with fast-food chains like Dunkin' and .

Beyond, more than six months ago, unveiled a turnaround strategy that entailed reducing expenses, increasing prices, and discontinuing the jerky product it produced through a joint venture with . To rejuvenate flagging sales, the company has concentrated on the health advantages of adopting a plant-based diet through collaborations with groups such as the American Cancer Society and endorsement deals with college athletes. Although health has always been a key selling point for Beyond, the company previously placed a greater emphasis on environmental concerns.

Some of the plant-based meat industry's problems, according to Brown, are due to misinformation from the meat industry and cattle farmers, including doubts about the processing of plant-based meat.

Mycelium-based steak tips are now available from Beyond Meat, which already offers plant-based alternatives. The new product has a texture similar to a filet, making it a potential substitute for chicken in salads, burritos, and other dishes.

He stated that the emphasis has been on a limited number of ingredients, high protein content, and low saturated fat.

The company is introducing simplified versions of its Beyond Burger and Beyond Chicken to supermarkets, in an attempt to appeal to customers who believe plant-based meat is overly processed.

Beyond declined to share any details on the timing of the launches.

Losing diners and investors

The market value of Beyond once exceeded $14 billion, leading to increased investment in plant-based meat and an influx of competitors.

The company's market cap is now under $400 million, and its stock has lost a third of its value in 2024, reflecting investors' concerns about the health of the business and the industry's struggling sales.

In the second quarter of 2022, Beyond reported a 37% decrease in net sales from the same period in 2021, resulting in $93.2 million, which was 8.8% lower than the year-ago period.

Since Beyond went public five years ago, its stock has increased as more consumers purchased its plant-based meat at grocery stores and fast-food restaurants like Dunkin'. However, the pandemic only temporarily boosted sales as lockdowns encouraged more at-home cooking, and the sales lift did not persist.

Despite collaborating with prominent restaurant chains like McDonald's, Beyond Meat's menu items did not become permanent in the US market. However, its partnership with PepsiCo resulted in a single product, which negatively impacted its margins for several quarters.

As the broader category faced challenges, consumers began to lose interest in plant-based meat, frequently citing taste issues or concerns about processing.

Last year, the sales of plant-based foods, including milk, meat, egg, and butter alternatives, increased by only 1% to $8.1 billion, according to data from the Plant Based Foods Association. The milk alternatives segment accounts for approximately a quarter of the category's total retail sales, while plant-based meat follows closely behind.

And as consumers' tastes shifted away, investors also lost interest.

Kellogg considered spinning off or selling its plant-based business as part of a broader three-part split of the company, but ultimately decided to keep it under the umbrella of its snacking spinoff, which Mars is buying. Impossible Foods has been rumored to be considering an IPO since 2021, and its CEO recently stated that the company could sell or go public in the next three years, a much longer time horizon.

However, Beyond has no plans to sell itself, Brown told CNBC.