Reuters – Beyond Meat forecast annual revenue below estimates February 24, as the plant-based business pioneer wrestles with labour and supply chain disruptions and faces stiff competition in the United States.
The plant-based meat space has become crowded in recent years with more traditional names, including Tyson Foods and Kellogg entering the fray and offering big discounts to get more people to trial their products.
Beyond Meat’s gains from international growth and the sporadic return of growth in U.S. restaurants were also “dampened by what we believe to be a temporary disruption in U.S. retail growth, for our brand and the broader category,” chief executive officer Ethan Brown said in an earnings statement.
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Those remarks echoed comments made by rival Maple Leaf Foods, parent of Lightlife Foods, the same day about a possible stall in the faux meat category.
Maple Leaf chief operating officer Curtis Frank said during an earnings call that many consumers tried plant-based proteins early on but that they did not repeat purchases.
Beyond Meat said it expects revenue of US$560 million to US$620 million for 2022, compared with estimates of $637.3 million, according to Refinitiv IBES data.
