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Beyond Meat, once the darling of the alternative protein category, reported an 18% decline in revenue for 2023, despite heavily discounting prices in the U.S. This sobering downward revenue spiral for Beyond has continued in 2024, a stark contrast to the heyday of astronomical valuations in the plant-based meat industry just a few short years ago.
Now, everyone has an opinion on how alternative protein brands should be marketing (or not) in this time of turmoil—from the recent well-publicized rebrand by Impossible to Beyond’s focus on healthier ingredients with American Heart Association endorsements.
As smaller brands run out of funding, marketing experts like Scott Galloway are advising companies to cut prices and staffing while eschewing brand building altogether. Some media outlets have written off the entire alternate protein category as unviable, while big meat and dairy continue to denigrate us as “ultra-processed foods.”
In an increasingly divided America, alternate proteins seem on the brink of becoming yet another hot political issue. The bottom line: We are at a critical juncture in this space. Brands in the alternative protein category need to take a step back and reassess whether the industry’s current approach can lead to success—or risks turning consumers away altogether.
Shifting 11,000 years of consumer behavior
Expecting consumer behavior to change overnight in food, barring a COVID-like disruption, simply isn’t realistic. For 11,000 years, we’ve consumed the same handful of plants and animals (12 crops and five animals for 75% of our calories, to be precise). Humans truly are creatures of habit when it comes to what we eat.
But smart marketing and creativity can help shift consumer and social norms. In fact, with deference to Galloway, I believe that we don’t need to cut back on marketing—we need to get better at it, especially the consumer insights and 4 P’s.
Product
We’ve forgotten that the 4 P’s include the product, a pretty important driver in food. Marketing for food and beverage has evolved a lot, but one thing hasn’t changed: taste. Much has been written about how alternative proteins have fallen short in this department and, yes, the industry must deliver better-tasting products that consumers want to buy repeatedly. Food has been and always will be highly emotional, not rational, and it’s going to be hard to change how people eat without using creative brand-building.