Food giant PepsiCo has partnered with Beyond Meat to “build a more sustainable food system.” Beyond Meat’s share price jumped 31 percent on the morning of the announcement.
Called the PLANeT Partnership, the joint venture will develop, produce and market snacks and drinks made from plant-based protein.
PepsiCo’s Global Chief Commercial Officer, Ram Krishnan said, “Plant-based proteins represent an exciting growth opportunity for us, a new frontier in our efforts to build a more sustainable food system.
“We look forward to combining Beyond Meat’s expertise with our capabilities in brand-building, consumer insights and distribution.”
Ethan Brown, Beyond Meat Founder and CEO, said, “PepsiCo represents the ideal partner for us, one of global reach and importance.”
He said the joint venture, “unites the depth and breadth of their distribution and marketing capabilities with our leading innovation in plant-based protein.”
The venture will develop products grown and made sustainably. This includes using techniques like regenerative agriculture and net water and carbon-neutral production plants.
Plant-based ingredients without GMOs, bioengineered ingredients, hormones, antibiotics, or cholesterol will be used.
PepsiCo generated more than $67 billion in net revenue in 2019. Beyond Meat was founded in 2009. It’s committed to improving human health, climate change, constraints on natural resources and animal welfare.