Subway announced a new partnership with Beyond Meat to test exclusive plant-based menu options, starting with the Beyond Meatball Marinara’ sub.
Starting this September, for a limited time, Subway will test the plant-based meatball sub in 685 participating restaurants in Canada and the U.S.
The company said it will have the same flavor as the traditional meatball sub, and will feature marinara sauce, Provolone cheese, grated parmesan cheese and the first-ever ‘Beyond Meatball,’ with 24 grams of protein per six-inch sub.
Seventy percent of meat-eaters substitute a non-meat protein in a meal at least once a week, according to the NPD Group. Subway fans in North America can create more than one billion plant-forward sandwich, flatbread and Signature Wrap combinations. With the addition of the Beyond Meatball, Subway customers will now have two billion options.
“Subway appeals to so many fans because we truly offer something for everyone,” said Subway Chief Brand and Innovation Officer Len Van Popering. “Our guests want to feel good about what they eat, and they also want to indulge in new flavors. With our new plant-based Beyond Meatball Marinara sub, we are giving them the best of both worlds. And we are particularly excited about debuting a co-developed product that can’t be found anywhere else: the Beyond Meatball made just for Subway.”
Founded in 2009, Beyond Meat has a mission of using simple, plant-based ingredients applied in fresh ways to replicate the taste, texture and other sensory attributes of popular animal-based meat products, while offering the nutritional and environmental benefits of plant-based proteins.
Beyond Meat’s portfolio of fresh and frozen plant-based proteins are sold at more than 53,000 retail and foodservice outlets worldwide.
“We’re excited to partner with Subway and are grateful that the menu team through to senior management has entrusted us as their innovation partner to deliver delicious plant-based proteins to their guests,” said Beyond Meat Founder and CEO Ethan Brown. “We look forward to a long-term partnership with Subway as we together serve and delight existing and new fans of this iconic chain.”