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Can protein startups and their investors take on Big Cow?

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Re: Can protein startups and their investors take on Big Cow?

#41

Post by Animats »

Several startups are trying to grow real meat in vitro. Memphis Meats (which is in San Francisco, not Tennessee) has succeeded in growing chicken in vitro from stem cells. Mark Post at the University of Maastricht has been able to grow beef in vitro. This stuff tastes like meat from animals. It's the production cost that's the problem.

That's going to be the good stuff. Further downscale are the processed soy products. These are Soy Extender 2.0; textured vegetable protein processed to make it taste more like meat. You can buy soy hamburger patties now, under the Beyond Meat brand. Whole Foods carries them. Anyone tried one?

Re: Can protein startups and their investors take on Big Cow?

#42

Post by maxerickson »

Animats wrote: post #41

Several startups are trying to grow real meat in vitro. Memphis Meats (which is in San Francisco, not Tennessee) has succeeded in growing chicken in vitro from stem cells. Mark Post at the University of Maastricht has been able to grow beef in vitro. This stuff tastes like meat from animals. It's the production cost that's the problem. That's going to be the good stuff. Further downscale are the processed soy product…

Beyond Meat isn't using soy:

http://beyondmeat.com/products/view/beyond-burger

Apparently the protein is mostly peas.

Re: Can protein startups and their investors take on Big Cow?

#43

Post by jack9 »

rgrieselhuber wrote: post #39
paulcole wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You mean as opposed to the 0 papers you cited?

Well, yes actually. I've read enough over the years that I personally avoid soy and soy-based products. When it comes up, I explain why. It's not a great accomplishment to link to a paper that performs well in organic search.

> It's not a great accomplishment to link to a paper that performs well in organic search.

It's a cursory BS test. If the evidence is hard to find, it's generally because there's no evidence available from credible sources. Belief that the truth is out there, is not sufficient anymore.

The Cochrane Collaboration has nothing.

A google search might lead to the NIH having an article citing "studies" about various related effects, but mostly says nothing and has 0 references. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1480510/

But if you search the NIH databases via https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed using (soybean[Title/Abstract]) AND men[Title/Abstract] you'll come across a doctor who wrote this: http://www.jurology.com/article/S0022-5347(11)60100-6/fullte... - admittedly, I don't think it's compelling as a standalone opinion.

This is a study, by a relatively small organization is better: http://jn.nutrition.org/content/132/3/570S.long

You might benefit from seeing the evidence in favor of Soy being a serious factor in reducing prostate cancer rates and other such ancillary benefits.

Re: Can protein startups and their investors take on Big Cow?

#44

Post by DiabloD3 »

pkaye wrote: post #40
xs wrote: post #37

Hampton Creek is the makers of "Just Mayo" which is talked about in this article. What isn't said is that they've been on the shelves at Target up until 2 months ago when Target pulled all their products for an unknown reason. Speculation has it that Hellmans was very upset that Just Mayo was disrupting the mayo business and delivered falsified claims to Target trying to get them to pull the products. It's a real slu…

Hampton Creek had their own controversies. They early on would send out people to buy their own mayo and create fake demand.

How is that any different than handing out free product coupons like most companies do to fake demand?

Re: Can protein startups and their investors take on Big Cow?

#45

Post by DiabloD3 »

azakai wrote: post #26
cyanexttuesday wrote: post #12

I hope so. If we can make meat or something really similar without killing animals, I would consider this a huge win for lessening the misery of the universe.

In addition to lessening misery, reducing the consumption of animal meat also helps prevent global warming (since animal farming is a significant contributor to the problem).

This is an unpopular statement around these parts, but, there's no proof that any human activity is causing the current increase in global temperatures, and they match the progression that preceded previous solar grand minimums, of which we are headed into another one now.

Not saying humans aren't causing tons of ground level pollution, which we totally are and that's indisputable. Just don't confuse it with global warming.

Re: Can protein startups and their investors take on Big Cow?

#46

Post by pkaye »

DiabloD3 wrote: post #44
pkaye wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hampton Creek had their own controversies. They early on would send out people to buy their own mayo and create fake demand.

How is that any different than handing out free product coupons like most companies do to fake demand?

They didn't give free product coupons to customers. They paid contractors to secretly buy. With coupons, atleast customers can try it out and retailers are aware that free products were given out.

edit: a link to a news article from a year ago. http://www.foxnews.com/food-drink/2016/09/23/report-alleges-...

Re: Can protein startups and their investors take on Big Cow?

#47

Post by mustacheemperor »

rgrieselhuber wrote: post #39
paulcole wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You mean as opposed to the 0 papers you cited?

Well, yes actually. I've read enough over the years that I personally avoid soy and soy-based products. When it comes up, I explain why. It's not a great accomplishment to link to a paper that performs well in organic search.

You can read a lot to support nearly any claim, that statement is less valuable evidence than even an actual anecdote. Regardless, surely you'd be able to recall at least one reputable source to serve your "explanation." Why do all the high performing organic search results supporting your claim come from sketchy websites and paranoid blogs? I see the "soy is evil" sentiment come up on hn with some regularity, and I can't understand why because the argument never presents it as more a credible claim than alternative medicines or homeopathy.

Re: Can protein startups and their investors take on Big Cow?

#48

Post by rbobby »

DiabloD3 wrote: post #45
azakai wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In addition to lessening misery, reducing the consumption of animal meat also helps prevent global warming (since animal farming is a significant contributor to the problem).

This is an unpopular statement around these parts, but, there's no proof that any human activity is causing the current increase in global temperatures, and they match the progression that preceded previous solar grand minimums, of which we are headed into another one now. Not saying humans aren't causing tons of ground level pollution, which we totally are and that's indisputable. Just don't confuse it with global w…

> there's no proof that any human activity is causing the current increase in global temperatures

"No proof that any" is just flat out wrong... on the level of "there's no proof that 1 + 1 always equals two".

Re: Can protein startups and their investors take on Big Cow?

#49

Post by tunesmith »

I don't really understand why this stuff is in the news so much these days. Boca burgers have been around forever and they taste fine - I tried Impossible Foods and it's at best a marginal improvement. And as for mayo, Vegennaise has been around for a while too and it's totally fine, other than getting a bit soupy when the jar is almost empty.

Re: Can protein startups and their investors take on Big Cow?

#50

Post by jpao79 »

I really do think there is a pretty sise-able market at least in California for people looking to reduce their intake of meat but not wanting to go full vegan. People who like the taste of a good burger but want to be healthier (more fiber, less fat and less antibiotics) and reduce the environmental impacts. I am one of them.

I think one of the simplest solutions would be to have a different line of products under a different brand name which had a mixture of plant based meat alternative (i.e. Boca or Impossible Burger) to actual meat in the burger. That way you get the taste of meat but the substrate is fiber based.

The level of actual meat could be adjusted like they do fat content for ground beef (i.e. I'm feeling sorta vegan today so I'm gonna go 75% plant based today).

The one thing I never understood is American vegetarian restaurants who serve tofu steaks as the entire dish. This looks awful:

http://www.pbs.org/food/fresh-tastes/asian-baked-tofu/

Asian people always eat tofu blended in with a bunch of meat and vegetables for the actual flavor. Here are some examples:

http://thewoksoflife.com/category/recipes/tofu/

http://thewoksoflife.com/2014/03/ma-po-tofu-real-deal/

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