Beyond Meat stock was rising Thursday following a report that said the plant-based meat producer was planning to release a vegan beef jerky snack as part its collaboration with PepsiCo .
Beyond Meat (ticker: BYND) and PepsiCo ( PEP
) established the Planet Partnership last January with the goal of developing and producing plant-based snack and beverages. The vegan beef jerky would be the first product of the joint venture, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Spokespeople for Beyond Meat and PepsiCo declined to comment or confirm the report.
Shares of Beyond Meat were up 1.3% in premarket trading Thursday. PepsiCo gained 0.5%.
Beyond Meat has launched ventures with several key food partners, including PepsiCo and Yum! Brands ( YUM
), which owns popular chains such as Taco Bell, KFC, and Pizza Hut. These partnerships have gradually begun to make inroads, picking up speed in the new year, and bumping the stock up after each announcement.
On Jan. 5, KFC announced it would add Beyond Fried Chicken, or chicken nuggets made of Beyond’s plant-based protein, to its U.S. menu for a limited time starting Jan. 10. The stock rose almost 15% as investors rallied behind the news.
After a short selloff, the stock gained an additional 4% on Jan. 10, when KFC launched the nuggets and Pizza Hut announced it would permanently add Beyond Meat sausage to its restaurants in Canada.
In contrast, the stock lost around 7% in December following an incorrect report that Taco Bell had canceled a planned test of Beyond Meat’s carne asada grilled meat. The companies later clarified that the test wasn’t canceled.
Shares of Beyond Meat have lost 3% this year, slightly outpacing the S&P 500, which has lost 4.9%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which has declined 3.6%.
Write to Sabrina Escobar at [email protected]
