Plant-Based Food Industry Sees a Shakeout

Plant-Based Food
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Plant-based food
Courtesy of Ella Olsson (Flickr. CC0)

Plant-based Food Industry sees an inevitable shakeout as investor optimism meets realism. Even Wall Street is souring on plant-based substitutes.

Shares of Oatly and Beyond Meat divested half their worth this year. The stocks were inclined to giant leaps and abrupt plunges in value aggravated by wider demand swings and strain from short-sellers.

Beyond Meat traded below its all-time high at 87%. Oatly traded below its debut price at 80%.

After years of climbing sales, customer interest in meat options is weakening. The 52-week retail deals of plant-based meat substitutes fell 5.8%.

Many of Kellogg’s products took off and had a shakeout period, but the race for sales growth, market share, and customer retention will soon occur.

Plant-based food
Courtesy of Thomas Hawk (Flickr CC0)

In the early days of the pandemic, there was a high demand for plant-based food as people were looking for fresher alternatives. Many who were not vegetarian tried and kept buying plant-based chicken, sausages, and beef.

A year ago, there was tremendous enthusiasm for plant-based food. People believed it to be a healthy and sustainable source of nutrients, and the industry saw the valuations enthusiastic.

The companies spent much of their funds on marketing to compel consumers to try their plant-based food. The arena was crowded as traditional food companies, and new start-ups chased the same growth. As a result, the plant-based industry saw exuberance in the category and entries of new players.

Opportunities forward

The slowdown is not flogging each plant-based producer, but the disruption has mulled on other players in various ways. For example, sales of egg alternates are roughly flat over the 52 weeks ending April 30. Yet, Tetrick sees options to increase consumer awareness and restaurants with its egg replacement on their menus.

As money is not readily available, experts see some true winners and the emergence of reliable companies.

The plant-based food industry might see a model merger as the meat options category closes on $1.4 billion in annual gross sales. Together, Beyond, Morningstar Farms, and Impossible companies account for 60% of the bucks disbursed on meat substitutes.

Written by Janet Grace Ortigas
Edited by Sheena Robertson

Sources:

CNBC: The plant-based food industry is facing a reset as Beyond Meat and Oatly shares suffer
Pehal News: The plant-based food industry is facing a reset as Beyond Meat and Oatly shares suffer
User Walls: The plant-based food industry is facing a reset as Beyond Meat and Oatly shares suffer

Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Ella Olsson’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of Thomas Hawk’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License

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