To wonder who eats this food and why?

[BingoBonus]

https://groceries.asda.com/product/plant-based-meat-alternatives/plant-based-by-asda-chicken-style-fillets/1000383161908

Plant-based chicken-style breaded fillet. The main two ingredients are water and oil!

I don't understand the boom in plant-based ultra-processed foods...........do people actually buy these as a healthy option? And if you are vegetarian why would you want something that looked like meat?

If you know what can end up on UK soil you wouldn't eat anything.

@Itsneverwhatitseems the stats suggest otherwise, slightly more people are more concerned by the methods used than the basic concept.

Meet Britain’s vegans and vegetarians | YouGov

YABU.

It's not something I particularly enjoy myself, but it doesn't stop me understanding other people do and that more choice is usually more beneficial than less choice

Most vegetarians are opposed to the basic concept of eating meat.
I'm not. I just don't want to eat it myself.

Thanks @Reugny
so pointless unfounded comment then.🤣

Ah. The people that think supplementing vitamin d is better than sunshine. They also believe fake food can sustain them. Of course it can. But inefficiently and to be eco you need to be efficient vegan diets are not efficient they are the diet of people who can afford luxury, a globally sourced mix of food delivered in moments to be fresh etc. High carbon, high waste.

Why do you think people need to eat meat?

I have existed perfectly well on my non meat diet. It was eating meat that made me sick.

You have scoured the world and found that no child has actually died from being raised vegan.

Does meat eating affect your ability to read. The Belgium news didn’t attribute the deaths to being vegan and the New York Times couple and the New South Wales couple didn’t have children die:

No idea where Italy comes into it

Also fwiw if not eating meat before puberty stunts your growth why am I only just over 5ft and Dh 5ft 9” and our non meat eating Dd and Ds talker than us and taller than anyone in our extended families,

Some may not be opposed, such as yourself.
Most are.

My autistic daughter eats meat substitutes like this because the texture and flavour is consistent and therefore this is safe Vs a meat equivalent
My veggie teenager eats these because it's a really simple switch for meat, he never feels like he's missing out and he eats common meals that everyone eats without having to eat animals. He's veggie for animal welfare reasons, not health reasons.
I really don't see the issue with food that simulates meat? So long as it's not meat it works for us.
For a very long time, meat substitutes have mimicked their meat equivalents.
And let's be honest, chicken nuggets don't look like chickens, burgers don't look like cows, and sausages don't look like pigs.

My three DSs all vegetarian from birth.
All well over 6ft, we aren’t btw so jo idea why the6 are so tall.
All very sporty, first teams rugby, football, cricket, swimming awards in regional finals and in Olympic fencing team !

No mental or physical negative impact what so ever.
None of my friends children or all the children at events held by the vegetarian society are affected either.

No one stumbling around on crutches or delirious because they haven’t eaten animals.

My DD has been veggie for 10 years and occasionally she likes to eat plant based meat substitute products like chicken nuggets, veggie sausages, quorn mince etc. No harm in it - each to their own.

This

This is primary school stuff. Or at least it is what I learned in my primary school. You don’t need to kill animals to stop them from creating manure.

The more I read your arguments about needing to eat meat the more I think the world needs to go vegan if this is an example of a meat eater and their ability to process information

Exactly. From what the articles suggest, those children were not eating normal veggie or vegan diets. There were effectively being starved, so there were clearly other issues at play.

Tbh, it would be just as easy to find media stories about children who have died from malnourishment and neglect where veganism hasn't been a factor. Daniel Pelka is the first that springs to mind, but there will be plenty of others.

Children's health is at risk if they have neglectful parents who don't take care of them properly. Regardless of whether they eat meat and dairy or not.

I don’t eat meat because im
allergic. I like meat though. A lot. So I buy plant based versions because I like meat. Lot of people are veggie not because they don’t like meat, but because of the ethical implications. I’m sure you could work that out really.

Not exactly a shining example of the cognitive powers bestowed by meat eating, is it @Kennykenkencat?!

Its true that you don’t need to kill animals to stop them from creating manure, but manure doesn't pay for the keep of the animal.

Could well be true. But in this case it is actually a useful label as tomato soup wouldn't usually be vegan.

I'm not vegetarian but I am increasingly trying to buy "better" meat, but less of it. That means we are eating a lot more meat free meals. I don't eat commercially produced eggs if I can help it either, though obviously it's difficult to avoid that completely if you buy or eat anything at all outside the home which contains eggs.
Most of my meat free meals are vegan because DS is allergic to dairy and eggs and I mostly cook from scratch. But on occasion I do buy convenience food. I agree the item in the original post does look particularly unappetising and I probably wouldn't choose it, but some of the fake meat products are quite tasty. I rather like Linda McCartney sausages. Of course they are not health foods and it wouldn't be sensible to rely on this type of food as a major part of your diet. But is plant based junk food any better or worse than meat based junk food? Probably not. But either is useful on occasions when you need something quick and easy.

Thankyou. Interesting article
1000 responses from 6million veggies and vegans in the UK, nevertheless a random sample is still relevant.

The main reason people become veggie is animals
The contributing factor after the initial change in diet and to keep them going is environmental.
Thats what the article says.

These are an interesting set of questions and i think i might put it to the vegetarian Society to ask similar

Tbh I'm baffled as to why people eat dead flesh. And drink pus filled milk from a cows tit. And eggs that come out of a chickens butt.
But vegans are the weird ones!

Absolutely and I know my grown kids who run around the shops throwing stuff in are very thankful of all the additional labelling.
As am I. The days of having to read all the small print have all but disappeared.

@Itsneverwhatitseems I found it interesting too, I suppose my original statement should have read "not all vegetarians are opposed to the basic concept of eating meat". I can say this with confidence since I myself am one of those. It is the way it happens which is so far from "natural" that bothers me most. Yet it still comes back to a similar sentiment - animal cruelty and welfare.

Absolutely. And to be honest if people buy less meat because the fake meat is in prettier packaging, it’s more environmental, or because they want to save animals or whatever I don’t care, I’m all for it.

Every meal without meat helps

I used to eat Quorn Mozzarella and Pesto escalopes, which I think taste really nice. I did it because I wanted to cut down on my meat consumption for environmental reasons. I think it's extremely easy to buy things like this and feel like you're doing a good thing - there's so much in the media about veganism atm.

However, after hearing a podcast about the evils of ultra processed food, I try and avoid things like this now.