Little time? At the end of the text there is a summary.
Something is wrong this evening in the urian-american burger shed TGI Fridays next to the Maryland highway. The noise level is as deafening as ever, the waitresses down on their usual slogan ("Hello, I'm Brittany, and I'll take care of you") before she scribbles the order for the cheeseburger on her note. As far as usual.
But then the routine question remains, which should not be missing from any boulette roaster at this point: "How do you want your burger? Rare, medium rare or well done?"
Because TGI Fridays now offers the Beyond Meat Burger, and where the clientele exceptionally has no choice: The meat comes in the unit light pink. After all, the pork pastry looks juicy between the two halves of the roll, which Brittany served a few minutes later. With the typical black grill stripes, where the patty was on the grate.
Everything fake. Because at the Beyond Meat Burger nothing was ever part of a cow. He looks like meat, tastes (more or less) like meat, but is not made of meat. But from pea proteins, potato starch, coconut oil and other ingredients, all have one thing in common: they are not of animal origin. The bloody look is helped by beetroot.
Ironically, in America, the stronghold of the barbecue culture, the meat substitute Burger has begun a triumphal procession. It is served not only in the 400 branches of TGI Fridays between Alabama and Wisconsin. For a few days now, the Dunkin 'breakfast chain, which has now removed the donuts from its name, sells Manhattan sausage sandwiches without meat. And in the refrigerated shelves of the Whole Foods eco-chain, there is also Hack, which was created on the other side of the slaughterhouse.
Sales expectations corrected - upwards
Of the development that food experts have identified as the next megatrend, one group has already benefited a lot: the shareholders of the Californian company, which gave its name to the meatless burger - Beyond Meat. With a price of $ 25 per share, the start-up went public in May. The paper closed at three times the price on the first day of trading. Since then, it has continued to climb sharply, up to $ 235 in the lead - up more than 800 percent. The previously unknown company became one of the most successful new issues of the year and made the highly anticipated Nasdaq debutants Lyft and Uber look like wallflowers.
The fact that up there, the air is thin, the investors should be clear, however, no later than Monday. The stock plunged 13 percent after-hours, after Beyond Meat founder and CEO Ethan Brown announced the latest quarterly results. The reason for the disappointment of the investors was less the balance sheet figures than the announcement that the company wants to throw another quarter of a million shares on the market. The existing shareholders also want to sell three million shares.
According to the Vegan Brown, everything is going well: Once again, the company from El Segundo had to correct its sales expectations for 2019 upwards. Compared to the previous year, revenues are now expected to increase by 170 percent to $ 240 million. Just since the IPO, the global number of outlets has increased by over 20,000, Brown reported. The concern voiced by analysts that Beyond Meat may not be able to keep up with production sounds like a luxury issue.
The company does not seem to be stopping. When the supply chain Blue Apron recently announced that it would include the plant burger in its cooking boxes, this was not due to Beyond Meat, but to its new customer. The previously ailing share of Blue Apron shot up over 25 percent.
Fight against hell on plates
Many investors are counting on the food market to face a new gold rush when meat is meatless and fish is served fish-free. Beyond Meat is not aimed at the relatively small segment of vegetarians, but at eaters who do not like the taste of animals but for their own health or the environment accept the plant alternative. Of course, the marketing experts of the target group have already missed a name: "Lessetarier" - ie someone who consciously eats less meat - or "Flexitarier".
"Fake Meat Will Save Us," a New York Times commentator shouted to his readers: "Industrial agriculture is the coal industry of food production" - that is, a dying industry. Not only does the production of a single beef burger devour two and a half thousand liters of water. Unhealthy food is more lethal "than unprotected sex, alcohol, drugs and nicotine consumption together".
Hell on plates. In view of such prospects, many Americans are stuck in the steak. Beyond Meat Chef Brown calms them down by not having to give up meat. You just have to change the definition of what meat really is. Many farmers in the US like that less. They urge the legislator to prohibit the new competition from using the word meat for their goods. So far, little success.
According to many analysts, cattle breeders will continue to lose ground in the $ 1.4 trillion global meat market in the coming years. Investment bank UBS estimates that the segment of plant-based meat alternatives is expected to grow from $ 4.5 billion in 2018 to $ 85 billion in 2030.
Nestlé and Tyson Foods climb
Beyond Meat, whose investors include actor Leonardo DiCaprio, Microsoft founder Bill Gates and ex-CEO McDonald's, Don Thompson, wants to benefit. However, in the first decade of its existence, the company, whose market capitalization is around $ 13 billion, has not made a profit yet.
And the competition is gaining momentum. Fast food chain Burger King has teamed up with Beyond's Impossible Foods competitor, McDonald's has included "Big Vegan TS", whose soy and wheat based patty is based on beetroot.
The battle gets really hot with the arrival of the giants of the food industry, such as Nestlé and Tyson Foods. For example, US company Tyson, which processed nearly two billion chickens last year, plans to launch nuggets of peas, linseed and other plant-based products this summer. His share of Beyond Meat Tyson has repelled before the IPO of the small competitor - it is now able to develop their own meat imitations, it was said to justify.
Nestlé has its own subsidiary, Garden Gourmet, dedicated to meat imitation. Best-known product so far: the Incredible Burger, which McDonald's places in the "Big Vegan" between the buns.
How many of the 50 billion citizens Americans eat each year will be meatless in the future will become apparent. In any case, the customer of TGI Fridays in Maryland tastes the replacement product, says waitress Brittany. She herself has not tried it yet.
In summary: The market for meat imitations is growing - the success of Beyond Meat has created a hype. The target group includes people who like to eat meat but have health, ethical or environmental concerns. In the food industry therefore there is a gold rush mood. The defense reactions of the meat producers cause so far nothing.
Editor's note: In an earlier version of this article, McDonald's was reluctant to introduce meat imitation and Nestlé had announced corresponding products. In fact, both groups have already entered the market and cooperate partly with each other. The error has been corrected.