Better brands: Is Beyond Meat Sustainable?

An honest review of the world’s favorite meat alternative.

Is Beyond Meat sustainable?

Beyond Meat is a plant-based meat producer based out of California. Within a decade, the protein maker evolved from savvy startup to a multi-billion dollar publicly traded company.

Sustainable Review Media

Beyond Meat says they are “making plant-based meat that is better for people and the planet”. Let’s find out if they meet the SR standard.

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The scoop: Is Beyond Meat sustainable? The plant-based protein maker has turned veganism mainstream. But they need to be more transparent.

Some talking points:

• Beyond Meat packaging needs work. Their flagship product (Beyond Burger) is not compostable.
• Beyond Meat uses 99% less water, 93% less land, 90% fewer greenhouse gases, and 46% less energy than a traditional beef burger.
• Pea protein is a sustainable protein choice, but they should prioritize sustainable legume farming > organic farming.
• A report from S&P Global Market Intelligence in 2018 criticized Beyond Meat’s transparency around sustainability reporting, giving them a 0%. Tyson Foods got a 98%.