To be annoyed that vegan options have replaced vegetarian?

Tofu isn't a processed food
It's a natural one (usually made with soy bean curd, I think)

Exactly. Non vegans don’t want to hear it though. Read threads on here about what people eat, it’s mostly non vegans, and they eat a lot of UPFs. But then on threads where they want to vegan bash, all of a sudden all these non vegans eat only whole foods to suit their argument. 🙄

I've said this same thing upthread. "Vegan food is soooo processed!!'

Yes, the faux meat types of food are.

But of course we don't clutch our pearls over the 1000s of UPFs that non-vegans regularly eat, do we? Even if all vegans ate UPFs every day, they'd not be anywhere near the majority who do.

Tofu is minimally processed and very nutritious. Lots of foods are processed, like the milk and bread most people eat, it doesn’t make them UPFs or unhealthy. Minimally processing foods is beneficial to humans.

I make my own hummus, as does the cafe local to us. Even lots of shop bought ones don’t contain anything I’d worry about. It’s interesting that UPFs
and terms like ‘horribly processed’ are used much more when talking about vegans. The shops are full of UPF foods and most people aren’t vegan so non vegans are consuming most of them. Most vegans I know eat a lot less processed foods than non vegans.

Tofu is not an ultra processed food.

I bought myself a vegan cheese board for Xmas and only ate some of one of the cheeses on it(there were 5, and I prefer very strong flavours and despise cheeses with cranberries etc). I left it at my parent's and my 'no nonsense I'd eat roadkill your diet is appalling the bible says to eat meat' dad, scoffed the lot without realising. 🤣

Some fillings for the sandwiches were carrot and hummus, fake beef slices and horseradish, tofu egg and cress, vegan Philly and cucumber

Using tofu for egg is lovely when it’s done well. Using black salt works well, as does adding things like turmeric, mustard, nutritional yeast etc. Hummus and carrot is nice, better with beetroot and seeded bread

Even without debating the taste, it's just all so horribly processed. Tofu, fake beef, vegan cream cheese (made of?). I bet they're not making the hummus fresh either.

If I'm going to eat vegan then I want something that can stand on its own as a nice meal, not be a sad substitute of something much nicer. I find that so depressing!

Vegan 'faux meat' using palm oil makes up a teeeeeeny part of the palm oil industry. It's in around. 50% of supermarket produce and vegans are a tiny minority. Nationwide they make up (at the very most in certain regions) 4%. Most regions much fewer vegans.

That is without even mentioning that a lot of vegans wont go anywhere near faux meat. So even fewer consumers of palm oil within it.

Around 75% of soy production is in order to feed the animals that are eaten by non-vegans. 'Have an issue' with vegans for being hypocritical, I understand that but they're by far to blame for that problem.

I looked at my local restaurants too, (post upthread) and going by what vegetarians on this thread have said, the choices here would be okay. Lots of cheese pastas pizza curry chilli etc, some faux meat in the vegan options but only one in the vegetarian options and more vegetarian than vegan. I think it is the same for lounge? I've been once and they did have a 'faux meat' burger that they'd ran out of but the rest were veg and pulses based.

@Strictlymad , that is, I believe, the sensible attitude.

Some fillings for the sandwiches were carrot and hummus, fake beef slices and horseradish, tofu egg and cress, vegan Philly and cucumber

Using tofu for egg is lovely when it’s done well. Using black salt works well, as does adding things like turmeric, mustard, nutritional yeast etc. Hummus and carrot is nice, better with beetroot and seeded bread. 😋

We have a vegan cafe and vegetarian/vegan restaurant very close to us who do great food, no fake meat at all.

Whilst I obviously understand animal cruelty in the food industry I (who eats everything in moderation) have issue with vegans them eating soy and palm oil which is fueling the destruction of the Amazon and the habitat of all the animals there. So I eat a small amount of locally produced higher welfare meat and dairy instead

I'm not vegan (or even vegetarian) but love tofu so would love the tofu "egg" cress ones, and the carrot and hummus ones.

The only one of these I would eat would be the hummus.

The only vegan cheese I like is the cathedral city one. Even non vegan family members will eat that happily and one relative who is very anti vegan didn’t realise it was vegan when he ate it. He was gutted. 😂

Some fillings for the sandwiches were carrot and hummus, fake beef slices and horseradish, tofu egg and cress, vegan Philly and cucumber

I appreciate everyone's tastes are different but this sounds absolutely awful to me. And I say this as someone who has been vegetarian for life and cooks almost exclusively vegan at home.

Vegans, possibly due to their diet, have much more strident voices.
That is the reason.

To be fair, if you look at that menu as a whole, including burgers, salads, flat breads, brunch etc there are plenty of options that include eggs and real cheese - cheddar, halloumi, feta.
Five of the eight vegan dishes are salads or dishes that don't need dairy or eggs, like an Asian vegetable stir fry.

I've recently tried the Dairylea Dunkers, actually really nice and felt like a kid again 😁
Tasted pretty cheesy.
Unlike the Babybels I tried, thought they were disgusting 😓🤢

I've got gut problems atm, and have just discovered plant based Philadelphia!! Tbf it's not bad when used to replace dairy in things like sauces. And yes, I can't eat dairy or wheat, and was given the vegan menu for deserts !!

Almond milk is bloody dreadful, environmentally speaking. 50 billion bees dead in one season. How many bees are worth a calf, I wonder...

I've just been to look at the menus for the "Lounge" chain of resaurants as there's one within half a mile of me so friends often suggest it as a place to eat.

There are two menus - standard and vegan.

10 main courses with meat
8 vegan main courses
1 vegetarian main course

Given that there are about 5 times as many vegetarians as vegans (according to the article I saw) you'd think the veggies might merit more than one, but I guess even one is better than none.

Lots of the vegan options are not in any way helpful to the planet. The trend for fake meat is definitely not more environmentally friendly that a locally caught fish, for example. Vegetables may also be shipped from the other side of the world.

I'm veggie because I don't like meat and for health reasons. I don't eat UPFs generally so offering me fake meat is not particularly helpful. It's nearly impossible to get a decent bean burger these days as it's always fake meat and fake cheese upf crap now.

Asian and middle Eastern restaurants are your best bet for veggie these days. A lot of the Asian stuff is naturally vegan by default but I'm fine with that.

I'm not saying any of those things aren't a choice, I am saying this thread is about choices. We know it's a choice. A poster saying 'vegans/vegetarians 'can't' eat whatever it is, obviously doesn't mean they literally cannot insert it into their mouth and swallow it. Saying 'won't eat' just isn't a normal way of conversing about it.

If you've been following the thread - including my own contributions - you will have noticed that I was responding to a post that appeared to be dictating to other people what their food choices 'should' be and what they 'should' be content with having available to them in general restaurants.

Yes, unless there is an allergy in the mix, it is a choice to never include any foodstuff in your diet. That choice may be because of your religious faith, your ethical stance or just what you do or don't like the taste of.

All of these are 100% valid. I just object to people expecting others to live with their personal choices - and framing it as 'you can' but 'I can't', so I get to choose for both of us.

Agree, it's pandering to whatever is the latest trend, in this case veganism. Same with allowing fecking dogs everywhere, a trend which they think will bring in more money.