Beyond Meat Supermarket Sales Up Nearly 200% Amid COVID-19 Crisis

If you’re like me, some of the tastiest, low-effort meals you’ve eaten during the pandemic have involved a Beyond Burger patty, pickles, and a bun, or a package of Beyond Beef, a jar of tomato sauce, and pasta (adding sautéed mushrooms if you’re feeling fancy).

If you’re like me—hitting “add to cart” and “add to cart” again on Beyond Meat products online or adding them to our grocery cart in supermarket aisles— you’re definitely not alone. In fact,  Beyond Meat has become during the pandemic that supermarket sales of their plant-based products have gone up 194.9% in the second quarter of 2020, that ended on June 27th, as compared to the same-quarter last year.

In their second-quarter financial results, the plant-based meat company also reports that net revenues increase to a record of $113.3 million, up 69% year-over-year. Of course, during the pandemic, foodservice sales have struggled as many restaurants, company cafeterias, school campuses, and the like, shuttered. To help offset this impact, Beyond Meat was able to repurpose some of its foodservice inventory into grocery-ready products, taking on $5.9 million in associated costs as they pivoted to meet consumer demand.

"I am proud of our record net revenues and growth during a very challenging period...Throughout the quarter, our brand experienced an enviable combination of consumer trends–increasing household penetration; increasing buying levels per household; and strong repeat purchase rates of nearly 50%, well above the success threshold for consumer packaged goods. Further, we forged ahead with our long-term growth strategy,” Ethan Brown, Beyond Meat President and CEO said in the same financial report.

Brown notes the company’s expansion efforts into the EU and Asia, as well as the debut of their Cookout Classic value pack which brought the price of their patty down to $1.60, making it competitive with conventional meat.

“Though the Cookout Classic only reached stores in the last 2 weeks of the second quarter, it accounted for 16 points of the year-over-year volume growth in our U.S. retail business,” Brown comments of the launch’s resounding success.
Between summer grilling and wowing our carnivorous roommates with these plant-based patties, we're pretty sure we accounted for at least 15 points in that YoY volume growth. But with dinner,  just a few flips on the skillet and a generous swizzle of ketchup and mustard away, do you really blame us for going overboard? Good thing a recent Stanford study just came out saying that swapping two plant-based burgers a day is heart healthier than meat.