Beyond Meat, the plant-based protein company founded in 2009 by Ethan Brown, has evolved its visual identity through several distinct phases, most recently rebranding as Beyond The Plant Protein Company in 2026. The company’s logo history reflects its shift from meat mimicry to a broader plant-protein positioning.
Design and History
Beyond Meat’s first major visual identity overhaul came in October 2016, when the New York office of strategic brand and packaging design agency Bulletproof created a bold new visual identity and packaging design for the company. The design concept featured a bold brand mark with Beyond Meat’s signature fork featured within rustic stamped typography and crowned by a “veggie animal symbol.” The work was built on a strategic visual platform called “Dig into Fulfillment,” using butcher shop visual language and dramatically shot food photography to add credibility and flavor cues to the plant-based products.[1][2]
By 2019, the company had adopted a circular emblem featuring a steer in the center facing left and wearing a cape. This mark was formally registered as a trademark with the US Patent and Trademark Office, with the official description reading: “The mark consists of a solid circle with a steer in the center facing left wearing a cape.”[3] The caped steer motif was described in contemporary press coverage as a cow or bull wearing a superhero cape.[4]
In March 2026, Beyond Meat announced a significant rebrand, changing its name to Beyond The Plant Protein Company. The company stated it planned to use “Beyond” more frequently as its primary brand name going forward, explaining that the shorter name “better reflects who we are today.” A company spokesperson said the move “puts less focus on mimicry, an increasingly complicated and limiting frame, and more focus on the high-quality plant protein products we offer.”[5] The change was reflected on the company’s website and social media channels, with packaging featuring only the name “Beyond.”[6]
The rebrand rollout has been phased. As of the announcement, the new name had only appeared in the US and Canada, while international markets continued to operate under the original Beyond Meat name. The company’s legal name remains Beyond Meat, Inc.[5]
Meaning and Symbolism
The caped steer emblem, which appeared in the company’s circular logo from around 2019, was widely interpreted as a superhero reference. French press coverage described the logo as “a cow adorned with a superhero cape,”[4] and Ad Age noted the updated logo was “meant to look like a caped bull or steer.”[7] The imagery positions the plant-based product as a heroic alternative to conventional meat.
The 2016 identity introduced the “veggie animal symbol” and a fork integrated into the typography, both described by Bulletproof as core brand equities. The agency’s stated goal was to shake up the “sterile aesthetic” of plant-based product shelves and deliver “a real-food experience” with the “essential essence of the farmer’s market.”[2]
Logo Index is an independent educational archive covering logos, visual identities and graphic design history. All trademarks and brand assets remain the property of their respective owners.
