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Beyond Meat signs global supply deals with McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut

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Re: Beyond Meat signs global supply deals with McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut

#241

Post by bendubuisson »

drewg123 wrote: post #2

This is the best news I've heard all week. The more widely vegan "meat" is available, the more likely it is to be adopted by average people and not just dedicated vegans. Reducing the demand for real beef is probably one of the best things we can do in the short term for the environment, due to the amount of land required for cattle farming, and due to the surprising amount of methane emitted by cattle. (see the docu…

I'm a vegetarian, but Cowspiracy is not something I would use in an argument, the thing is full of shortcuts and misleading facts...

Re: Beyond Meat signs global supply deals with McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut

#242

Post by tryitnow »

elktea wrote: post #59
drewg123 wrote: post #2

This is the best news I've heard all week. The more widely vegan "meat" is available, the more likely it is to be adopted by average people and not just dedicated vegans. Reducing the demand for real beef is probably one of the best things we can do in the short term for the environment, due to the amount of land required for cattle farming, and due to the surprising amount of methane emitted by cattle. (see the docu…

The popular crusade against meat is one of the more misguided. Meat provides far more nutritional value than any plant and the environmental impacts have been greatly exaggerated. See below: Regarding carbon: "removal of livestock in the US would only lead to a net GHG reduction of 2.6% in national emissions. Similarly, removing all dairy would lead to a reduction of just 0.7%. At the same time, both transitions woul…

Those items just address the carbon issue (and 2.6% is still quite a bit), they don't address the issue of the massive land footprint that livestock requires.

Where's the evidence that meat provides far more nutritional value than any plant?

And there have been a lot of studies showing that high consumption of red meat and processed meats are not helpful to health.

I'm a meat eater and I'd love to feel better about my love of steak and burgers, but sadly I just don't see the evidence.

Re: Beyond Meat signs global supply deals with McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut

#243

Post by jonwachob91 »

whalesalad wrote: post #128
jfengel wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Taco meat [EDIT: in Taco Bell's usage] is a perfect application, since its texture is already squishy and the flavor is dominated by spice. Plus, it's wrapped in a shell and mixed with lettuce and other things. Even a mediocre fake meat is enough to pass. Beyond Meat should have no trouble producing a virtually-indistinguishable taco meat.

Del Taco already has a Beyond Meat taco and it tastes like shit.

Too be fair though... Everything at Del Taco tastes really bad. :)

Re: Beyond Meat signs global supply deals with McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut

#244

Post by bjtitus »

elktea wrote: post #59
drewg123 wrote: post #2

This is the best news I've heard all week. The more widely vegan "meat" is available, the more likely it is to be adopted by average people and not just dedicated vegans. Reducing the demand for real beef is probably one of the best things we can do in the short term for the environment, due to the amount of land required for cattle farming, and due to the surprising amount of methane emitted by cattle. (see the docu…

The popular crusade against meat is one of the more misguided. Meat provides far more nutritional value than any plant and the environmental impacts have been greatly exaggerated. See below: Regarding carbon: "removal of livestock in the US would only lead to a net GHG reduction of 2.6% in national emissions. Similarly, removing all dairy would lead to a reduction of just 0.7%. At the same time, both transitions woul…

TLDR: There is no "popular crusade" telling people to end all meat consumption which will somehow leave you nutritionally deficient. Hundreds of millions of people eat vegetarian diets around the world and numerous studies show the benefits of reducing red + processed meat consumption. Replacing fast food burgers with plant based alternatives could be a good option for people with decreased availability of plant based alternatives to meat.

> The popular crusade against meat is one of the more misguided.

The only "popular crusade" is the universal dietary guidance against the excessively high consumption of red meat in the western diet. There are mountains of evidence showing links between higher red meat consumption and increased risk of the top killers in many western societies (heart disease, colon cancer, etc.). [1] [2] [3]

There's a quick summary from the Harvard School of Public Health for those who don't want to pour through the published studies: https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/whats-the-bee...

You cite many studies here about the environmental effects of meat production and exactly 0 citing the nutritional or health aspects of meat consumption. Meat can contain valuable nutrients but hundreds of millions eat vegetarian diets around the world and many other sources (nuts, legumes, fish, etc.) can provide these nutrients in better forms. All major health organizations recommend limiting red and processed meat consumption below what the average American diets currently consist of.

Replacing fast foods with plant based alternatives doesn't seem like a bad thing at all when you consider that meats and grains are the only things Americans are consuming over and above the dietary guidelines – at 140% of the recommendations [4]. Given that Heart Disease is the number one leading cause of death in the United States, shouldn't we be prioritizing alternatives which reduce the intake of high-glycemic carbohydrates? There have been many studies covering plant-based alternatives which back this up. [5]

[1] Battaglia Richi E, Baumer B, Conrad B, Darioli R, Schmid A, Keller U. Health Risks Associated with Meat Consumption: A Review of Epidemiological Studies. Int J Vitam Nutr Res. 2015;85(1-2):70-8. doi: 10.1024/0300-9831/a000224. PMID: 26780279.

[2] Salter AM. The effects of meat consumption on global health. Rev Sci Tech. 2018 Apr;37(1):47-55. doi: 10.20506/rst.37.1.2739. PMID: 30209430.

[3] Abete I, Romaguera D, Vieira AR, Lopez de Munain A, Norat T. Association between total, processed, red and white meat consumption and all-cause, CVD and IHD mortality: a meta-analysis of cohort studies. Br J Nutr. 2014 Sep 14;112(5):762-75. doi: 10.1017/S000711451400124X. Epub 2014 Jun 16. PMID: 24932617.

[4] https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/chart-gallery/gallery...

[5] Vatanparast H, Islam N, Shafiee M, Ramdath DD. Increasing Plant-Based Meat Alternatives and Decreasing Red and Processed Meat in the Diet Differentially Affect the Diet Quality and Nutrient Intakes of Canadians. Nutrients. 2020 Jul 9;12(7):2034. doi: 10.3390/nu12072034. PMID: 32659917; PMCID: PMC7400918.

Re: Beyond Meat signs global supply deals with McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut

#245

Post by thehappypm »

8ytecoder wrote: post #25
partiallypro wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are there stats to back up that non-vegans begin consuming more vegan based meals if they have the option? And I mean more than once. A consumer might try it but then go back to normal. At there good stats on repeat buying on a large scale?

Every meal without meat is a win in my book. I could be wrong - I assume most Americans have meat at least twice a day if not all three meals and also snack on jerky and other meat/dairy products. So any change will be a win.

I would think most Americans diet looks something like:

Breakfast is vegetarian but not vegan, a bowl of cereal with milk, bagel with cream cheese, coffee with milk, toast and butter. Even the more involved breakfasts like eggs or waffles don't necessarily need to have meat, just because making bacon or sausages is time consuming and most breakfasts are on the go.

Lunch usually has meat but maybe not a lot. A few slices of turkey on a sandwich, a salad with a few strips of chicken, a bowl of soup with chunks of chicken or beef.

Dinner has meat almost always, unless you are actively avoiding it or are eating one of the rare vegetarian dinners Americans will eat, like cheese pizza. Most dinners will be something like chicken with mashed potatoes, pasta with meatballs, stir fry, burgers and fries.. meat is a centerpiece.

Snacks are usually unhealthy but vegetarian. Chips, cookies, ice cream. Jerky is expensive and more of a road trip/camping food.

Re: Beyond Meat signs global supply deals with McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut

#246

Post by mikeg8 »

beisner wrote: post #202
exabrial wrote: post #193

Personally I avoid their stuff. I'd rather have a locally raised steak from one of my neighbors who loves their cattle and their job. Eating highly processed food just isn't good for you.

To be fair, neither is red meat. Unclear which is worse, though.

Where are the studies that show grass fed red meat is bad for your health? All studies I've seen concluding red meat is a health concern are using grain finished beef.

Re: Beyond Meat signs global supply deals with McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut

#247

Post by mrbuttons454 »

ukyrgf wrote: post #55

Impossible is definitely better tasting, but I'm happy to see Taco Bell is included in this deal (though not in the headline here on HN). I haven't been there since they got rid of potatoes, so having a vegan option would make my taco consumption during lunch break skyrocket.

They are bringing the potatoes back.

Re: Beyond Meat signs global supply deals with McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut

#248

Post by buzzy_hacker »

exabrial wrote: post #193

Personally I avoid their stuff. I'd rather have a locally raised steak from one of my neighbors who loves their cattle and their job. Eating highly processed food just isn't good for you.

The vast majority of people don’t have neighbors who lovingly raise cattle for slaughter.

Re: Beyond Meat signs global supply deals with McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut

#249

Post by ska »

maxerickson wrote: post #239
ska wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> How are you comparing nutritional value between meat and plant products? It's impossible to do this really rigorously, as there are too many unknowns in nutrition still. So this leaves holed you can drive all sorts of sized trucks through, which means a lot of argument but not a lot of resolution.

There's not magic shit in meat, it's mostly water and amino acids and the remaining fraction is mostly bad for you. (I eat meat all the time, but we know a lot more than barely anything about nutrition. Figure out vitamin RDAs in milligrams if you want an example)

I didn't say we know "barely anything", just that the unknowns are significant enough to allow a lot of wiggle room and arguments. Including, for example, the accuracy of many vitamin RDAs.

Re: Beyond Meat signs global supply deals with McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut

#250

Post by thehappypm »

I love the idea of vegan meat alternatives but personally don't like Beyond's taste. It tastes too much like peas for me, doesn't get past "uncanny valley". I do like Impossible though -- Qdoba has it and it's fantastic in a burrito.
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