PepsiCo to offer plant-based snacks in collaboration with Beyond Meat

PepsiCo will develop and sell snacks and drinks made from plant-based protein, in collaboration with alternative meat company Beyond Meat.

The joint venture between PepsiCo and California-based Beyond Meat will invent new types of plant-based snacks and drinks that can meet growing consumer demand for sustainable alternatives to traditional food products.

The plant-based proteins represented an "exciting growth opportunity", and marked a "new frontier" in PepsiCo's efforts to "build a more sustainable food system", said Ram Krishnan, PepsiCo global chief commercial officer.

PepsiCo is expanding its portfolio of products that are produced sustainably, which reduces the carbon emitted at its operations and invest in regenerative agriculture techniques.

The joint venture will initially be focused on the US but could expand into China and the UK.

Beyond Meat is among the world's leading plant-based meat companies and sells in over 80 countries in Europe, North America, and Asia.

The announcement of the joint venture increased the company shares by 26 percent to $199.38.

The tie-up is the latest of major deals in the plant-based food market.
Beyond Meat now has partnerships with Taco Bell, KFC, and Starbucks, in addition to a distribution deal with Walmart.

Netherlands-based the Vegetarian Butcher, which was acquired by Unilever in late 2019, signed a major supply deal with Burger King last year.

According to a report published by FAIRR, the plant-based protein sector attracted twice the amount of venture investment in the first half of 2020 than the $1.1 billion that it had in the entire 2019.