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Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

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Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#561

Post by chabska »

oblio wrote: post #245
chabska wrote: post #220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> humans never ate until within the last ~50 years Humans have been eating some of these for thousands of years. I know "extract" is a scary big scientific word, but most of the time it's just immersing the grain in hot water, strain it to remove the pulp, then boiling the liquid to concentrate it. You can separate the starch and protein from any bean or grain in your kitchen with some basic kitchen equipment and hot…

The dose makes the poison. People weren't doing that at a mass scale before people figured out they could make money by increasing addictiveness, once technology was good enough.

I would like to point you towards the industrial processing of soybean into tofu, soymilk, tempeh, and soy sauce in Asia that has been going on for a long time.

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#562

Post by xvector »

slashdev wrote: post #401
xvector wrote: post #348

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Eh I just decided that $3-5 extra is fine for not causing immense amounts of physical suffering to some poor animal for my burger meal.

So you've decided it's more ethical it not be born or live at all. Obviously the only reason beef cattle exist at all is because we eat them. It doesn't seem such a clear cut ethical decision to me. Certainly there are some forms of raising livestock that are terrible (broiler chickens come to mind), but there are other forms that actually seem quite pleasant for the animals most of the time (e.g. free-range cattle).

Free-range isn't pleasant at all, that's a fair bit of clever marketing. It's virtually impossible to find meat that has lived a "pleasant" life and slaughter. I'd eat meat myself if I could find a reliable and cost effective source of ethical farming.

https://www.dominionmovement.com/facts - Ctrl-F "free range"

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#563

Post by hn_user82179 »

trevorkoob wrote: post #448
hbn wrote: post #425

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Health conscious folks would definitely choose these over hamburgers Not sure what health-conscious people you know, but I'd hazard to guess that most would choose the patty made from a single natural ingredient that's been a staple of the human diet since the dawn of man over the ultra-processed slurry of starches and oils.

You may have a point about processing, but I think by talking about "most people" you have invalidated any future points you may be trying to make. For example: "single natural ingredient" not every cow is only fed with grass, and what about that grass, has it been treated, etc... also Neu5Gc Mammal meat contains it, Humans have lost the enzyme (perhaps over that time since "the dawn of man"), it causes inflammation.…

> not every cow is only fed with grass, and what about that grass, has it been treated, etc...

the (low) possibility of mad cow always lurks in my mind when discussing things like this. I have a deep fear of prions.

The much more common scenario is the use of growth hormones in cows - to the point that pro athletes traveling/competing in Central and South America are instructed to avoid beef altogether as they later test positive in their drug tests for anabolic steroids.

I personally opt for meat over vegetarian options when given the choice to make sure I get sufficient protein (I do track and I struggle to get enough when eating vegetarian) but I still would vastly prefer more meat alternatives. I'm always very impressed by the Beyond options and I'm glad it's very slowly becoming more mainstream. I remember the first time I'd had an Impossible Burger was in San francisco about 10 years ago - a group of friends and I were talking about this "crazy meatless burger that still feels/tastes like meat" and we searched out a restaurant that offered it. The fact that national fast food chains are offering it now is indicative of the progress being made in society and normalizing the meatless alternatives.

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#564

Post by neuralRiot »

hbn wrote: post #425
lambda wrote: post #132

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is such a weird comment. Why do you think that "ethical vegans" like the "taste of plants" any more than anyone else? The whole point of being an ethical vegan/vegetarian is to not consume animals, not because you don't like the taste. Health conscious folks would definitely choose these over hamburgers. Sure, they're not perfect from a health food point of view, but they're lower in sodium and saturated fat tha…

> Health conscious folks would definitely choose these over hamburgers Not sure what health-conscious people you know, but I'd hazard to guess that most would choose the patty made from a single natural ingredient that's been a staple of the human diet since the dawn of man over the ultra-processed slurry of starches and oils.

> the patty made from a single natural ingredient that's been a staple of the human diet since the dawn of man.

The fact that meat comes from a single source doesn’t make it automatically healthier, so is ricin, cyanide and polonium yet I wouldn’t include any of them in my diet. Plant based protein is healthier than its animal counterpart and this is proven by proper scientific studies, not by Tik-tok stars or nutrition “experts”.

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#565

Post by andxor »

lambda wrote: post #132
Grimblewald wrote: post #11

I always wondered who their demographic was. The core early adopters, the ethical vegans, who actually like the taste of plants are never going to make a lab made ultra processed salt bomb their daily driver (never mind issues surrounding industrial agriculture). Health-conscious folks would take one look at the ingredient list and bail because of the heavy processing and industrial fillers. You've got bodybuilders a…

This is such a weird comment. Why do you think that "ethical vegans" like the "taste of plants" any more than anyone else? The whole point of being an ethical vegan/vegetarian is to not consume animals, not because you don't like the taste. Health conscious folks would definitely choose these over hamburgers. Sure, they're not perfect from a health food point of view, but they're lower in sodium and saturated fat tha…

I think it's pretty obvious from their financial results that this company is a commercial failure, and the subset of people who consume their product on a regular basis is vanishingly small.

Do some people occasionally eat fake meat? Sure. Enough to build a sustainable business? Less clear.

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#566

Post by t1234s »

raptor99 wrote: post #538
t1234s wrote: post #406

I think beyond nailed the texture of their burger patties. When you fry one up it has the same texture as a cheap frozen hamburger patty. Their sausage links also have a similar texture to a cheap frozen bratwurst. I think beyond nailed the taste a bit better than impossible. Also beyond seems to use better ingredients than impossible. All these products are high in sodium like all processed food and you definitely s…

I think nature nailed the texture of their burger patties. When you fry one up it has the same texture as a beyond patty. Nature's sausage links also have a similar texture to beyond sausage. I think nature nailed the taste a bit better than beyond. Also nature seems to use better ingredients than beyond. All these products are high in sodium like all processed food and you definitely shouldn't live off them, just li…

A+ Sir!

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#567

Post by flexagoon »

Jensson wrote: post #320
flexagoon wrote: post #147

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't. I don't know where you live, but unless it's on a farm, branded foods are obviously not a US-only phenomenon. Anything even remotely processed will be based on proprietary recipes. Regular meat burgers and sausages are just as "proprietary" as Beyond Meat ones, let alone foods like candy bars or snacks. Do you think Snickers bars are not proprietary?

Bread, cheese etc have names that says what it is that is unrelated to brand. That is the normal way for most products, a minority of products in the grocery stores I visit are brand only, most things you can get essentially the same from another brand. Exception would be sodas and candy and such, but that is a tiny fraction of what people buy. Its like when I go to a pizza place I can get the same pizzas regardless…

Regular burger saying "burger" on the package is not any different from Beyond Burger saying "plant-based burger" on the package. The exact recipe is a secret, but the general methodology is not. Just like with almost all processed foods.

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#568

Post by DangitBobby »

lambda wrote: post #132
Grimblewald wrote: post #11

I always wondered who their demographic was. The core early adopters, the ethical vegans, who actually like the taste of plants are never going to make a lab made ultra processed salt bomb their daily driver (never mind issues surrounding industrial agriculture). Health-conscious folks would take one look at the ingredient list and bail because of the heavy processing and industrial fillers. You've got bodybuilders a…

This is such a weird comment. Why do you think that "ethical vegans" like the "taste of plants" any more than anyone else? The whole point of being an ethical vegan/vegetarian is to not consume animals, not because you don't like the taste. Health conscious folks would definitely choose these over hamburgers. Sure, they're not perfect from a health food point of view, but they're lower in sodium and saturated fat tha…

> And at most restaurants, I've never noticed a "premium" for it, it usually costs the same as a beef patty; it just provides another option, for the days I want to skip meat

I'm a vegetarian. I have never _not_ paid at least $2 premium to sub in an Impossible or Beyond patty. I've had tons of them, there are some in my freezer.

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#569

Post by DangitBobby »

autoexec wrote: post #133
xethos wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Without taking a side, you've skipped every step past the field here. Transportation, butchering, packaging, and grocery store shelves, with profit margins, health / sanitation checks, and shrinkage at every step

Don't forget the massive costs of lobbying governments to weaken regulations and reduce inspections and also the costs of bribing meat inspectors, and the legal expenses and lawyer fees required to defend themselves from lawsuits surrounding their illegal activities, then also the millions in fines they have to pay to settle lawsuits they lose about their bribing of meat inspectors or colluding to drive wages down or…

Surely none of that is actually more expensive than just following the actual health regulations or they wouldn't bother to do any of it.

Re: Beyond has dropped “meat” from its name and expanded its high-protein drink line

#570

Post by DangitBobby »

JSR_FDED wrote: post #144
slfnflctd wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In my opinion as a mostly-vegetarian who used to adore burgers as a kid, the Impossible brand was by far the most realistic (and my beef-loving partner would agree, they made stroganoff with it and loved it)... but the price truly is ridiculous at this point. It started out just barely justifiable, and it's simply too high now. I am more than a little bit outraged that animals who were raised in miserable industrial…

Agree. Impossible is on a different planet in terms of being very very close to the taste of real meat. Unfortunately still premium priced. It’s a pity that Beyond is getting so much attention because they’re not the best ambassadors for meat alternatives. People will try it, and then decide to wait another 5 years before trying again.

Which bums me out, because I like Beyond stuff. It has a distinctive taste that is obviously not real meat but very good in its own right IMO.
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