New Plant-Based ‘Meat’ is Set to Revolutionize the Food System
Mar 29, 2018

Linda Parker
Core Spirit member since Dec 24, 2020
Reading time 3 min.

The US company Impossible Foods has created a ‘beef’ burger made entirely out of plants. It announced on Wednesday that it plans to open a factory the size of a city block to make 1 million pounds of its plant-based burgers every month. Currently, the Impossible Burger is only available in eight restaurants in the US. But it hopes to introduce it to 1,000 establishments by the end of the year. As well as introduce it to supermarkets and international markets when the facility is running at full capacity.

Both vegans and meat-eaters say the Impossible Burger tastes like the real thing. And its environmental benefits over beef are encouraging. Plant-based meat could very well be the answer to the sustainability issues posed by animal agriculture.

The taste

When given the burger to taste, without being told it’s plant-based, meat-eaters think it’s real meat. Other meat-eaters couldn’t really tell the difference, and say they would choose the Impossible Burger over a beef burger because it’s more eco-friendly.

The people at Impossible Foods spent five years studying what makes a beef burger unique – the sights, sounds, aromas, textures and flavours – and used exclusively plant-based ingredients to recreate everything.

The burger is made from wheat, coconut oil and potatoes. But what makes it different from other veggie burgers is the ingredient heme. It’s a building block of life found in plants. But it’s abundant in meat. The company discovered that heme is what makes meat sizzle, bleed and taste ‘meaty’.

Another contender is the Beyond Burger from Beyond Meat (who also produce plant-based chicken). Instead of heme, the company uses beets to make the burger red and ‘bleed’. Beyond Meat point out that meat’s core ingredients – amino acids, lipids, trace elements, carbs and minerals – don’t just belong to animals, but plants as well. And its been working for seven years to figure out how to make a beef burger using only plants.

Pat Brown, former Stanford biochemistry professor and founder of Impossible Foods, said, “You don’t need animals to make uncompromisingly delicious meat”.

Rather than being marketed at vegetarians and vegans, Impossible Foods, Beyond Meat and other similar companies are trying to attract meat-eaters to their products.

Environmental benefits

Compared to the cow-based alternative, the Impossible Burger claims to use 95% less land, 74% less water, and create 87% less greenhouse gas. And Brown is very clear about his passion for sustainability. He said:

The way that we’re producing meat now is incredibly destructive. Our whole mission is to reduce the environmental impact of the food system.

The company is highly ambitious. Brown added that:

You can think of this as the birthplace of a whole new industry that’s going to transform the food system.

But this kind of transformation will only happen if the general population decides to give up meat for these alternatives.

More improvements, cheaper prices

It is likely that further improvements will need to be made to plant-based meat, so that it becomes truly indistinguishable from the real thing. While many vegans and meat-eaters say some versions of plant-based meat are identical to the real thing, others feel there are small (but recognisable) differences in texture, taste and appearance.

Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat are pioneers in the industry. But this doesn’t mean they will be the best companies in the industry. Soon, any sacrifices in variety or taste will be trivial – or even non-existent.

The major thing that puts meat-eaters off these kinds of burgers is the price. They’re not hugely expensive (about £4.80 for two Beyond Burger patties). But this is still more expensive than the cheapest beef patties. On the other hand, if you factored in the environmental and health costs of cheap, processed meat, it might not seem like such a bargain after all.

More innovation and higher demand may bring down costs. So would subsidising plant crops. (Currently the US government massively subsidises the meat, dairy and egg industries.) If plant-based meat becomes affordable, then there won’t really be any good reason to turn it down.

Linda Parker

Leave your comments / questions for this practitioner

To write a comment please
or
Services
Category filter
Concern filter
Type filter
Sort
 

All categories

Wellness Coaching
$20 USD
consultation
50 & Beyond Health & Wellbeing Discovery Session

Join me for a comprehensive look into what it will take to stay physically and mentally strong as you move through the second half of your life.

We all want to age without the fear of suffering from a chronic illness and still have the energy and strength to live the life we want.

The number one reason people fail to stay healthy as they age is the inability to consistently follow the right habits and behaviours for health transformation.

Through working with 1000's of clients over the last 20 years, I have been able to develop a coaching program that not only looks at nutrition, exercise, sleep and stress management but also how to develop the right mindset needed to succeed.

Having a plan is not as important as having the ability to implement it.

If you are someone who struggles to follow healthy habits consistently. Or you are someone who wants to learn more about what they need to do personally to avoid chronic illness. Then my 30-minute Discovery Session is ideal for you.

From the 30 minutes we spend together, we will go through in specific detail what it is you can do today when it comes to what to eat, how to get the most from exercise, how to develop a powerful sleep routine and how to build a healthy environment needed to live a healthy life.

And with over 20 years of coaching experience in the health & wellness industry, I have witnessed firsthand what it takes to consistently follow the right habits and behaviours for lasting change.

Expect to hear things that will challenge what you have always been told about nutrition, exercise, sleep and stress management. As someone who is over 50 and is stronger, fitter and healthier than I was in my 20s, 30s, & 40s, I am well-placed to know what works and doesn't as we move through this period of our lives.

Chris Deavin
Cognitive Psychology
$99 USD
consultation
Check Your Vibes! Find out how much Positive and Negative energy you have!

The Energy Leadership™ Index (ELI) assessment is the proprietary, research-backed assessment tool, created by iPEC, that takes something abstract, like the way a person views the world, and turns it into something tangible—a metric that you can see and feel and even reevaluate in the future.

You’ve probably taken personality tests, like Myers Briggs, DiSC, and Enneagram, but this is different. And transformational.

The ELI is an attitudinal assessment tool that captures how an individual currently perceives and approaches work and life. This means that you learn to make change happen in real-time when you encounter a moment of self-doubt, fear, or frustration.

With the awareness and insights gained through the Energy Leadership Index debrief, you have the opportunity to reshape your attitudes and worldview and transform your life into the one you envision.

Our worldview is the result of a combination of many different aspects: our past experiences, level of consciousness, perception of situations. Each of us has a unique combination of all seven levels of energy which, in turn, creates your typical viewpoints, perceptions, and beliefs about life.

Learning about your energetic makeup can help you to reframe your perspective, shift your consciousness, and increase your energy level as a result. Discover your unique energetic makeup by taking an ELI Assessment!

This comes with an hour debrief - As an FYI the price is what it is because there is a price to me- I have to pay the institution for the assessment and the scoring. Then I'll walk you thorugh your results.

David Jacks
Emotional Stress Release
$80 USD
healing session
Oxygen to the rescue! Great for Mental Health, Brain Injury, Detox, inflammation

Hyperbaric Oxygen Chambers are one of the oldest and safest treatments available. Oxygen detoxifies and heals. I was introduced to Hyperbaric Oxygen Chambers (HBOC) by Dr. Amen, a world reknown Psychiatrist. Oxygen is great for ADD, Mood Disorders, Trauma, Insomnia, Brain injuries, Wound healing and Inflammation.

This is from Dr. Amen's Clinic: "If you are struggling with a mental health condition, recovering from a concussion or traumatic brain injury (TBI), or dealing with cognitive or memory problems, hyperbaric oxygen therapy may be for you. People all over the world have reported recovering from a variety of conditions and experiencing dramatic improvements with this type of popular therapy."

Most people will feel a difference off of one treatment, especially if you typically have trouble sleeping. You will sleep like a rock.

David Jacks
Bach flower therapy
$35 USD
consultation
BACH FLOWER STANDALONE BOTTLE SERVICE

**This type of service is ONLY for clients who already know the remedies they want to take.

The standalone treatment bottle service is offered to US residents only .**

Iose Cocuzza, NC, CGP, BFRP

Related Articles

View All
Registered individuals enjoy all the possibilities of Core Spirit.