Beyond Meat Chief Operating Officer Doug Ramsey is leaving the company after his current arrest for assault.
Ramsey was arrested final month on on prices of “terroristic threatening” and third-degree battery after he allegedly bit a man’s nose following a Arkansas soccer recreation. Ramsey was launched on an US$11,000 bond the next day, in accordance with court docket information.
Beyond Meat suspended Ramsey over the incident. In a SEC submitting, the company introduced Ramsey’s departure, noting Friday will likely be his final day of employment.
The company appointed Jonathan Nelson, who was overseeing Ramsey’s position on an interim foundation following his suspension, to turn into the company’s senior vice chairman of operations.
Ramsey joined Beyond Meat in December final yr, pivoting from a three-decade profession at Tyson Foods.
Shares of Beyond Meat of have been down 2% in pre-market buying and selling Friday after Beyond Meat additionally introduced it was shedding 200 workers, or 19% of its workforce.
“This resolution was primarily based on cost-reduction initiatives supposed to scale back working bills, sharpen the company’s deal with a set of key development priorities, and goal money circulation optimistic operations throughout the second half of 2023,” it stated within the submitting.
Beyond Meat had been a market chief within the plant-based meat area, alongside rival Impossible Foods. It was a Wall Street juggernaut after its IPO in 2019, however since then has struggled to ship on gross sales objectives.
Shares have fallen greater than 90% from their 2019 excessive.
In its most up-to-date earnings report, the company blamed inflation for disappointing gross sales and downbeat outlook. Beyond Meat has lengthy stated it hopes to scale up sufficient to convey the value of its plant-based choices in keeping with animal-based merchandise. But in an earnings name with analysts, CEO Ethan Brown stated the company wasn’t there but. The worth of Beyond’s “beef” sells for $8.35 a pound, in contrast with USDA floor beef, which sells for $4.90.
“That is a really tough proposition when customers have very excessive ranges of inflation occurring and their shopping for energy in grocery is declining,” Brown stated.
— CNN’s Allison Morrow contributed to this story