This whole ‘plant-based meat’ movement is starting to pick up considerable steam, with fast-food giant Subway announcing a collaboration with Beyond Meat that will see a plant-based meatball sub rolled out through select stores in Canada and the US.

Kicking off next month, the Beyond Meatball Marinara sub will be available to our northern hemisphere brothers and sisters. Around 600 stores will provide the new meat-free meal which is said to have just as much protein as it’s real meat counterpart – 24g per 6 inch – and will also be served with the same cheese and sauce.

The plant-based meat movement is only just starting to gain momentum in Australia. Right now you’ll only find Beyond Meat plant-based products at select Coles and IGA stores – you won’t even find them in Woolies – as well as in a limited amount of franchises including Lord Of The Fries, Ribs & Burgers and Jus Burgers in WA. But other parts of the world are providing interesting insight into what happens once these products are readily available.

In the US alone, Beyond Meat has seen a juicy 550% increase in the value of their stock – since May. The rising star of plant-based meat-free products has also announced deals with other US franchises including Dunkin’, Del Taco and TGI Fridays.

“Our guests want to feel good about what they eat and they also want to indulge in new flavors.” says Len Van Popering, Subway’s chief brand and innovation officer of the collab with Beyond Meat. “With our new plant-based Beyond Meatball Marinara sub, we are giving them the best of both worlds.”

The Beyond Meatball Marinara sub is here for a good time and not a long time, so it won’t be a permanent fixture to the Subway menu. So far, no word on if the same project will be replicated Down Under but it does seem as though Australia might be lagging behind on this whole plant-based meat thing.

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