Subway Turns to Beyond Meat for Plant-Based Meatball Marinara Sub | Eater

"The world’s largest fast-food chain by store count is testing a plant-based take on its Meatball Marinara sub — the “Beyond Meatball Marinara,” made with Beyond Meat’s first-ever meatball — which will roll out to 685 U.S. and Canadian restaurants beginning in September for a limited run to gauge demand. The launch comes amid several challenging years marked by accelerated closures (the chain closed more restaurants than it opened in 2016 and shuttered over 1,100 U.S. locations in 2018, reducing its U.S. store count to under 25,000) and ongoing lawsuits from former franchisees alleging aggressive tactics such as rigged inspections. As part of a broader effort to win back customers, the company has ramped up collaborations — recently partnering with Halo Top, King’s Hawaiian and now Beyond Meat — a strategy that may help lure traffic, as evidenced by Burger King’s initial Impossible Whopper test, which boosted foot traffic by 18.5% in April, though it remains uncertain whether these tie-ups will reverse longer-term declines." - Jenny G. Zhang