October 8, 2022

JBS to shut down plant-based business in the US

Major Brazilian meatpacker JBS SA announced that it will shut down Planterra Foods, its US plant-based food business after about two years, signalling rising issues in the plant-based protein industry where sales are flattening, Reuters reported.

Nikki Richardson, a representative for JBS USA, said Colorado state-based Planterra sold fake meat under the Ozo brand, but JBS will now concentrate on its plant-based operations in Brazil and Europe. According to her, operations in Europe and Brazil continue to gain market share and expand their respective customer bases.

Gary Stibel, CEO of the consumer products consulting firm New England Consulting Group, said the industry is under pressure because meat substitutes do not taste good enough and because prices are too high. In his opinion, JBS made the right choice in closing Planterra.

Beyond Meat Inc lowered its revenue forecast for the year and announced job cuts this summer as efforts to reduce its prices were affected by rising inflation.

The size of the plant-based division of Canadian pork processor Maple Leaf Foods, called Greenleaf Foods, has been reduced by 25%.

According to NielsenIQ, the total value of meat substitutes sold in the US increased by 1.1% to about US$963 million in the year that ended on August 27. This includes both fresh and fully cooked products as well as imitation seafood. For the same period in 2021 and 2020, growth was 8.1% and 44.8%, respectively.

Data from NeilsenIQ also showed sales of fresh meat substitutes in the USfell 6.8% in the year ending on August 27 to about US$254 million. Sales in the category increased by 28.9% between 2020 and 2021.

-      Reuters