Plant-based meat company Beyond Meat (BYND -1.46%) launched an e-commerce site today, bypassing retail outlets and selling directly to consumers. The site will provide access to bulk items not found in stores, including variety packs offering an assortment of Beyond Meat products.
Orders from the new site will be delivered via UPS two-day shipping in insulated boxes. And in an effort to align with Beyond Meat's value of environmental sustainability, the box will be recyclable. Furthermore, shipping will be with UPS carbon-neutral shipping.
Image source: Beyond Meat.
Beyond Meat isn't the only plant-based meat company looking to skip the grocery aisle. Kellogg (K 0.28%) is known for breakfast cereals, but it also owns MorningStar Farms, which produces plant-based meats under its Incogmeato line. Today, for Burger Day, free Incogmeato samples are being delivered via Postmates in Dallas and Denver. The company hopes it will give curious consumers an opportunity to try plant-based meat for the first time. But the products will remain available for in-store purchase only.
Beyond Meat products remain available for purchase in over 26,000 U.S. retail outlets. In the first half of 2020, the company's retail sales in the U.S. have increased 180% year over year to $140 million. But its e-commerce site creates a new distribution channel for the growth stock to continue increasing sales.
By providing products in bulk packaging, Beyond Meat is able to reduce its costs by decreasing packaging expenses. Long term, the company hopes to reduce costs enough to bring the price of its products below that of traditional animal protein. In Q2, Beyond Meat's Beyond Beef patties were only around 20% more expensive than their animal-protein counterpart.
