Beyond Meat is shedding “meat” from its name as it moves into protein drinks and snacks, rebranding this week as Beyond The Plant Protein Co. — or simply Beyond — amid a sharp decline in U.S. plant-based meat sales. The El Segundo, California-based company changed its website and social media channels and introduced a sparkling protein drink called Beyond Immerse in January, with a protein bar planned for summer. The pivot comes as the company’s net revenue fell 14 percent in the first nine months of 2025 and its shares have been trading below $1 since the start of this year.

The rebrand signals a broader reckoning in the plant-based food industry. U.S. retail sales of plant-based meat have fallen 26 percent over the last two years, according to market research firm NIQ, as consumers scrutinized ingredient labels and found unfamiliar additives. Several competitors are chasing consumer demand for high-protein products as an alternative growth path.

Beyond Meat is dropping “meat” from its name, rebranding this week as Beyond The Plant Protein Co. — packaged simply as Beyond — as it shifts its focus toward protein drinks and snacks after years of declining sales in the plant-based meat category.

The El Segundo, California-based company, founded by Ethan Brown in 2009, updated its website and social media channels and introduced a sparkling protein drink called Beyond Immerse in January. A protein bar is planned for summer. The company’s net revenue fell 14 percent in the first nine months of 2025, and its shares have been trading below $1 since the start of the year.

“For me, it is an opportunity to reshape the company around very real food that is directly from plants,” Brown said. “It’s about delivering all those benefits of the plant kingdom to the consumer in ways that they’re going to be able to easily integrate it into their lives.”

A retreating market

U.S. retail sales of plant-based meat have fallen 26 percent over the last two years, according to market research firm NIQ, after peaking in 2020. Chris Costagli, a food thought leader at NIQ, said consumers grew cautious after scrutinizing ingredient labels and finding unfamiliar additives, added sugars, and high sodium content.

“There’s a lot of fillers and gums and texturizers and things that give those products a more familiar feel,” Costagli said. “I think as people have been paying closer and closer attention to what they’re actually ingesting, it’s causing some products to stumble.”

Beyond is betting that simpler formulations can reverse the trend. In 2024, it revamped its flagship burger to reduce ingredients. Last summer, it introduced Beyond Ground, a product made with just four ingredients — faba bean protein, potato protein, psyllium husk, and water — with no mention of “meat” on the packaging.

New Beyond products are currently available only through an online channel the company calls Beyond Test Kitchen, where Brown said the company plans to gather consumer feedback before moving into retail.

Competitors chase protein demand

Beyond is not alone in pivoting toward protein. Eat Just, which makes plant-based eggs, introduced a mung bean protein powder in spring 2025. Impossible Foods announced a partnership with Equii Foods in January 2026 to develop protein-packed breads and pastas. Silk, a plant-based dairy brand, also unveiled a protein drink in January.

Costagli said reformulating products with simpler, more recognizable ingredients has helped some plant-based dairy brands recover, and he said new recipes could have the same effect in meat alternatives.

Europe still a foothold

Beyond said it will continue making plant-based burgers, chicken, and other products designed to mimic meat. Those products remain available in Europe, where Beyond’s burgers and nuggets appear on McDonald’s menus — a distribution partnership that has no U.S. equivalent at present.

Brown said he still believes plant-based meat will become a dominant food choice over the next decade or two, but acknowledged the company must navigate what he called “a period of confusion.”

“It’s just not the moment for plant-based meat right now,” he said.