vegan meat may be hot, but it's not always healthier

while the world suffers through a pandemic and a recession, vegan meat products, of all things, have steadily been on the rise. since the beginning of the year, shares in beyond meat have risen by 82 per cent. forecasts have predicted worldwide sales of veganâ  meat products will reach about $120 billion u.s. in just five years. by 2040, this could rise to $450 billion.

for starters, the meatless patties are very high in sodium. their fat content is high as well, with beyond meat containing 20 grams of fat, 25 per cent of which is saturated from refined coconut oil. impossible burger has 31 per cent fat, of which 99 per cent is saturated. on the other hand, beyond meat has 20 grams of protein, and impossible burger has 19 grams.

“i would say [the vegan and meat burgers] are basically on par. if someone were to eat a ton of, say, mcdonald’s burgers, versus a ton of beyond meat burgers, i don’t really see the benefit of choosing beyond meat over the regular one,” says amanda li, a registered dietitian and founder of wellness simplified, a diet counselling service. “but if you were to make an actual vegetarian burger at home using beans, maybe some purã©ed sweet potato and walnuts, that’s totally different.”

the reasoning behind the vegan meat spike is unknown, although it may have something to do with the rash of covid-19 outbreaks at many meat processing plants in north america, one of the most egregious being the cargill facility in high river, alberta, with 952 cases to date.

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