Beyond Meat Inc. (NASDAQ:BYND) is reportedly facing significant challenges as two of its early adopters, Carl's Jr. and Jack In The Box Inc (NASDAQ:JACK) owned Del Taco Restaurants Inc., have removed its plant-based beef from many locations.
The shift reflects a decline in consumer interest in meat substitutes.
Most Carl's Jr. outlets, which exceed 1,000 in number, stopped offering the Beyond Burger as of April 24, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The chain initially launched the Beyond Burger in January 2019, marking one of Beyond Meat's first major fast-food collaborations.
The CEO of Carl's Jr.'s parent company, CKE Restaurants, had lauded the patty as an "industry game changer" at the time.
Although the Beyond Burger is largely off the menu now, a fried zucchini sandwich remains available at select locations, as per the report.
Similarly, Del Taco has discontinued Beyond Meat offerings across nearly 600 locations since last spring due to "low sales," according to a Bloomberg source.
Nevertheless, Del Taco remains open to exploring innovative plant-based menu options with Beyond Meat. Del Taco began its partnership with Beyond Meat in 2019, proclaiming it as "the future of tacos."
Once a favored choice on Wall Street, the company has seen its stock price plummet as it struggles to gain traction with consumers.
However, last week, the stock received fresh interest amid a rally in meme stocks after retail investor Roaring Kitty made a return to social media.
CEO Ethan Brown, in a recent earnings call, touted the fourth iteration of their burger as a "home run," signaling the company's hope to boost its fortunes by increasing prices.
The plant-based meat company's first-quarter revenue decreased 18% year-over-year to $75.603 million.
Beyond Meat is banking on new product developments and pricing strategies to reverse its declining market performance.
Beyond Meat stock has lost more than 30% in the last 12 months. Investors can gain exposure to the stock via Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (NYSE:VDC) and IShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (NYSE:IWO).
Price Action: BYND shares closed higher by 1.18% at $7.275 on Monday.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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