Beyond Meat Is Releasing Two New Burgers Next Year

Part of what separates the latest generation of plant-based meat brands from their predecessors is the methodical technological approach producers have taken to making their products taste more like the real thing. For instance, after Beyond Meat opened its massive new lab in 2018, we compared it to something out of a science fiction novel. And speaking of tech, similar to how software gets upgrades and updates, companies like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat continue to tweak their products as new discoveries are made. Even using similar lingo, when Beyond launched its reformulated burger last year, people were dubbing it “Beyond Burger 2.0.”

So for 2021, it’s another year, another Beyond Burger… another two Beyond Burgers actually, offering customers a chance to choose their meatless burger’s fat content similar to how they can choose different mixes of lean-to-fat when picking ground beef.

Beyond explains that these two still-unnamed burgers—though behind the scenes they’ve been referred to as “Beyond 35” and “Beyond 55”—are “designed to meet consumers’ growing demand for plant-based proteins that deliver on both taste and nutrition, while featuring an enhanced meaty flavor […] with an even better nutritional profile.” One of the new burgers will feature 35 percent less saturated fat compared to 80/20 ground beef while the other will feature 55 percent less saturated fat.

Comparatively, the current Beyond Burger formulation has five grams of saturated fat per four-ounce patty whereas the USDA pegs four ounces of 80/20 ground beef at about 8.5 grams of saturated fat. So interestingly enough, though the so-called Beyond 55 will have less saturated fat than the current version—thus Beyond dubbing it their “most nutritious patty yet”—the Beyond 35 appears to have the same amount as Beyond’s current burger—which may explain why it’s being referred to as “the brand’s juiciest patty for the meatiest burger experience yet.”

That said, both new burgers are billed as “having less total fat and fewer calories compared to [Beyond Burger’s] current formula and 80/20 beef.” And as mentioned before, both new burgers boast an updated flavor profile.

“Our commitment is to provide consumers with absolutely delicious plant-based meats that are better for people and the planet, no sacrifice required,” Beyond Meat founder Ethan Brown said in the announcement. “These new iterations deliver on this promise, and I am immensely proud of our team’s ability to make such strong advances in taste, juiciness and nutrition through our Rapid and Relentless Innovation program. Just as you can find different varieties of ground beef, consumers will now have more choice to satisfy their individual nutritional needs and preferences.”

The two new burgers are being unveiled at a preview event in Los Angeles this week, after which the company says they plan to launch both nationwide in early 2021.