While many offices are closed across the region because of the pandemic, Beyond Meat, the popular maker of plant-based burgers and sausage, has signed a $178 million lease for a new headquarters in El Segundo.
The 391,000-square-foot building at 888 N. Douglas St. is being developed by Culver City-based Hackman Capital Partners and is expected to be completed this spring.
The 1930s facility once housed a bus manufacturing plant for Pickwick Stage Co., and later served as an airplane manufacturing facility for Douglas Aircraft Co., according to Connect California, a commercial real estate news outlet.
The 12-year lease is reportedly one of the largest in Southern California since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Ethan Brown, Beyond Meat’s founder and CEO, said the El Segundo facility, on a 30-acre campus, will house “cutting-edge” research and product development teams.The company, founded in 2009, currently has offices at 119 Standard St., about 3 miles away from the newer campus.
“It is on this campus that we expect to advance ever more rapidly against our taste, nutrition, and cost metrics — inviting and empowering more and more consumers around the world to Go Beyond,” Brown said in a statement.
Representatives with the company could not be reached Friday to comment on how many workers the plant will employ.
Broad product distribution
The company’s meatless products are available at more than 112,000 grocery stores, restaurants, hotels, universities and other retail outlets. The Beyond Burger, for example, can be found at Safeway, Ralphs, Publix, Whole Foods, Denny’s, Costco, Courtyard By Marriott, Walmart, Amazon Fresh, Carl’s Jr., Friday’s and Yardhouse, among other locations.
Construction of the El Segundo plant will take place in three phases. It will include increased space to support multiple product lines and an expanded research team.
Meat alternatives gain popularity
While some have been reluctant to try beyond burgers and other meat substitutes, the trend of plant-based meats is gaining traction among consumers.
Virus outbreaks in factories have wreaked havoc with the nation’s meat supply chain, which by some estimates faced losses of more than $20 billion in 2020. Food giants and startups are working to navigate a future where protein isn’t dominated by conventional meat sources.
Beyond Meat, which manufactures the plant-based Beyond Burger, went public at a valuation of nearly $1.5 billion in 2019.
The company has made inroads into Asian markets and also inked a deal with Starbucks in April to offer its meatless sausage in China. The company announced it would debut its products in select KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell stores in China. Taco Bell on Thursday said it will begin testing a Beyond Meat menu item in the U.S.
An ‘inevitable’ transformation
Impossible Foods, Beyond Meat’s chief competitor, has also seen aggressive growth. The Redwood City-based company’s products can now be found at fast-food chains like Burger King, Qdoba, White Castle and Red Robin.
In a June interview with CBInsights, Impossible Foods founder and CEO Pat Brown said he expects plant-based products to “completely replace” their meat counterparts within the next 15 years.
“That’s our mission,” he said. That transformation is inevitable.”