A few years ago, I made a New Year’s resolution to eat more plants. I thought it would be good for my health, for the animals, and for the planet. And it would be easy. The rise of plant-based meat alternatives from companies like Impossible Meat and Beyond Meat has made it easier to satisfy occasional carnivorous urges while still eating less meat. You can also bring your own hamburger to eat.
Or so I thought. It turns out that meat substitutes are more expensive than traditional alternatives and made with complex ingredients that have questionable health. Still, the taste is fine. Understood. Others have similar concerns, and Beyond Meat believes that one of the reasons these products have seen a significant decline in popularity in recent years is He is reportedly in “survival mode” now. But beyond the meat aisle, the “plant-based” label can be found on instant ramen noodles, boxed macaroni and cheese, craft singles, Kit Kat bars, and even queso.You can now purchase plant-based products peanut butter.You can also wash your hair plant-based shampoo and apply a plant-based puff vape.
Queso, made from cauliflower instead of milk, is correctly described as plant-based. But if peanut butter is vegan in the first place, what’s the point of that label? And who wanted a plant-based booze? For packaging and advertising copy, plant-based Mark Lang, a marketing professor at the University of Tampa who studies food, said it has been applied to so many items, including highly processed foods and foods that don’t contain animal ingredients, that it’s “diluted to nothing.” ” he said. myself.
Technically, plant-based There is a clear definition. Cornell University biochemist Thomas Colin Campbell is best known for coining the term in the 1980s. A neutral and less problematic descriptor for a diet that is considered “vegan” Or “vegetarian”. that’s what made it plant-based It is a general term used to describe companies that want to sell meat alternatives to a wide range of consumers. The Plant Based Foods Association determines which products can bear the “Certified Plant-Based Seal” using essentially the same criteria: food made from plants that contain no animal products.
Some companies describe their products as “plant-based,” even though please do not meet these criteria. Products sold as such include foods that are always vegan, such as: packaged jackfruitand mixed with some animal foods, wallburgers “Flex Blend” putty. However, even products that are properly described as “plant-based” may mean different things to different people, as there is no single reason to avoid the effects of animal breeding and consumption. Emma Ignaszewski, associate director of industry intelligence and initiatives at the Good Food Institute, said health comes first, followed by environmental and ethical concerns.
Label ambiguity is a marketer’s dream, creating a huge opportunity to capitalize on the perceived virtues and health of eating a plant-based diet. Joe Albay, a professor of psychology and biological sciences at Southern University, said that brands use “plant-based” labels to “draw people’s attention to the overall goodness of a particular product,” while at the same time , said they use it to “distract attention” from less attractive attributes. California taught me. some are coconut water, which is relatively good.Others like it Liquor, probably not. And their environmental benefits remain unclear. Reducing the use of animal ingredients generally reduces emissions, but climate does have an impact. It’s not always that simple.
In this way, plant-based reflects that of organic or gluten free. These terms have specific meanings that legitimately help people make choices about food, but they are overused and forgotten.Buy now organic marijuana and gluten free water with you plant-based energy drink.Contains multiple labels gluten free, plant-based, No genetically modified crops, earth friendlyand fair trade, “Some of the products look like NASCAR vehicles,” Lang said. “You’re just putting buttons all over the place trying to get my attention.”
We may have already reached the peak of “plant-based”.according to recent research According to the Food Industry Association, there is considerable confusion about what the labels mean, which can deter people from purchasing plant-based products. Now, some people are completely skeptical of the label. 2023 study Alvai’s co-author suggests that people are less likely to prefer foods called “plant-based” (or “vegan”) than those called “healthy” or “sustainable.” One reason may be the negative association with plant-based meat alternatives. considered “artificial” Because of its ultra-processed nature, co-author Patricia Sleboda, assistant professor of psychology at Baruch College, City University of New York, told me.
Second, consumers may be unsure whether “plant-based” foods are healthy. Americans may respond better if the actual benefits of foods are emphasized, she says. Similarly, a market study conducted by Meaty, a company that sells mushroom-based meat substitutes, found that “plant-based” labels on foods can lead to “a bad eating experience, bad flavor, bad texture, bad nutrition, and poor nutrition.” It was found that this was an indication of “too much material.” , it’s overprocessing,” Christina Ra, vice president of marketing and communications at Meati, told me.
Maybe some good can come out of the messy situation of making everything “plant-based.” Meati deliberately avoided labels altogether, instead emphasizing the product’s contents (“95 percent mushroom root”).recent whole foods report By 2024, consumers will want to “go ‘plant’ back to ‘plant-based'” by replacing “complex meat substitutes” with recognizable ingredients like walnuts and legumes. I predicted it would be deafening. Taking this prediction literally, Actual Veggies sells a vegetable and grain patty called “The Actual Green Burger.” Some dairy alternatives also omit “plant-based” to simplify ingredient lists. 2 items (nuts and water).
Shoppers just want to know what’s in their food without thinking too much about it. plant-based It wasn’t helpful in that regard. Even Campbell, after coining the term, admitted that it was a restrictive and potentially misleading phrase, leaving too much room for unhealthy ingredients like sugar and flour. Perhaps shopper outrage over the ambiguity of a “plant-based” diet may eventually lead brands to promote more plant-based diets, or eating only plants.
