ONTARIO, CALIF. -FiveStar Gourmet Foods is partnering with Beyond Meat to bring additional salad protein choices to consumers. The company is introducing a new Simply Fresh Taco Salad made with Beyond Meat plant-based beef crumbles.  

The new 7.5-ounce salad recently debuted in Publix supermarkets and is available to retailers nationwide in January. Along with the Beyond Meat beef crumbles, the vegetarian salad features fresh and flavorful toppings like fire-roasted corn, roasted red bell peppers with black beans, aged cheddar and jack cheeses, and crunchy tri-color tortilla strips—topped with a made-in-house Salsa Ranch Dressing. 

“This partnership allows us to be more versatile with our main product lines and enables us to feature plant-based protein as a key ingredient within all of our fresh, prepared categories, such as salads, breakfast and meal entrées,” said Tal Shoshan, chief executive officer of FiveStar Gourmet Foods. “From a culinary perspective, the Beyond Beef Crumbles are delicious, innovative, versatile and are designed to look, cook and taste like beef—which our chefs really like.” 

With 25% more toppings than similar salads in the category and only 260 calories, FiveStar continues to push the boundaries in the right direction, according to the company. The new salad is ultra-fresh sealed, which means consumers can enjoy a longer shelf life. The salad offers a contactless retail experience and is produced in FiveStar’s state-of-the-art facilities in California and Florida, which are USDA and SQF Level 3 certified.