Beyond Meat puts protein drinks at the center of turnaround plan

Food Dive reported the development on 2026-05-13. CEO Ethan Brown said it’s been acting as a “beverage company in hiding,” with a board of executives from Coke, Boston Beer and more.

The report places the news in a wider commercial context. Beyond Meat is betting that a move into protein drinks will turn around sales and bring consumers back to plant-based meat. President and CEO Ethan Brown said in an earnings call last week that the company is uniquely positioned to compete in the rapidly expanding functional beverage market because of its experience with formulating plant-based protein.

For the food sector, the practical implications extend beyond the immediate announcement. Earlier this year, the company announced Beyond Immerse, a protein-packed sparkling beverage, which was made available for a limited time through Beyond’s e-commerce site. Immerse is launching across New York this summer, through Beyond’s partnership with distributor Big Geyser.

Attention now turns to how companies, customers and regulators respond. Beyond Immerse is the first product to launch under Beyond’s broadened scope, with the company recently changing its name to Beyond The Plant Protein Company to reflect its ambitions outside of alternative meat. After early success, the company expanded Immerse to include more flavors.