The Impossible Burger

David Trammel's picture

Have you tried one yet? I haven't, nor do I particularly want to.

Its not because I think that the idea of replacing animal meat with a plant based substitute is bad. I just haven't like burgers for a while now. Seemed like every time I ate one it sat in my stomach like a few pounds of wet concrete. I've cut way back on my fast food as a part of eating healthier. When I do buy food on the run, its usually a roast beef sandwich from Arby's or Lion's Choice. Sometimes a few tacos if I'm being decadent. Or a pizza on a Friday as a treat.

This article has an interesting take on the Impossible Burger.

Impossible Burgers Aren’t Healthy, and That’s the Whole Point

"When you go to a restaurant and order a hamburger, do you think to yourself, “Ah, yes, this meal will be so nutritious”? Or do you try to ignore the calorie count while thinking, “I want the greasy sandwich that will taste so good but make me feel so bad”? I’m guessing it’s closer to the latter. So why is it suddenly a big deal that plant-based burgers, designed to mimic the flavor and texture of beef hamburgers while potentially being better for the planet, aren’t that healthy?

You might have noticed that nutritionists and the meat industry are dunking on increasingly popular plant-based burgers, such as the Impossible Burger and the Beyond Burger, because they’re not healthier than beef burgers. But that’s not the point. If you’re wanting a nutritious, heart-healthy meal, you can and should eat vegetables and whole grains and fruits and all the other stuff that everyone knows they should be eating.

The goal of taking on a vegetarian or vegan diet, or even just eating less meat, is to support animal welfare and to choose foods whose production contributes less to global warming. A vegetarian diet is not necessarily healthier than an omnivorous diet, and that’s OK. The nutritional status of the Impossible Burger doesn’t matter, because, like a regular hamburger, it’s a treat. You shouldn’t eat an Impossible Burger every day, just like you shouldn’t eat a hamburger every day."

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Slowly over the last few years, I've been making the choice of eating more vegetables and saving meat for the weekends. Beef and chicken mostly but sometimes fish or shrimp. I know that raising or catching all four of those damages the environment, so I try where I can to source my meat from better options. Finding local more organic beef or chicken producers or wild caught fish, rather than farmed. Not just for their lesser environmental impact but because they treat their animals better.

I've also been sharing meals with my sister. I like to prepare food, cooking and making dishes is relaxing for me. Sunday's I usually try to spend a few hours in the early afternoon making meals for the week. Some dishes are better made in bigger portions, so I take half of what I make to my sister and drop it off. I'm sure she appreciates the gesture but she may not realize that she's now eating a salad a week, and meals mostly of fresh vegetables and more nutritious ingredients.

I guess the idea then is to eat better but not beat yourself up when you treat yourself. Live by example and don't preach.

Blueberry's picture

Home made burger, start with a roast grind it at home for added fat use bacon. Then grate some Dubliner cheese mix the cheese in the meat and place on the grill. Hand meat grinders can be purchased new or found used. If you start grinding your own meat you will never buy store grounded meat again what a difference. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dubliner_Cheese This would be a good choice for a meat grinder. https://www.lehmans.com/product/10-clamp-on-manual-meat-grinder/

As a vegetarian of several years I'm growing weary of the Impossibeyond hype. For one thing I just find meat repulsive. I ate a lot of Morning Star products during my transition, but only bc it was a useful crutch as I relearned how to cook. But as a person aware of collapse the whole thing seems fairly silly. I haven't tried to get any real data on it, but I'm sure the ratio of energy and other resources put into producing these patties relative to their caloric output is quite unbalanced.

The Next Big Thing is going to be lab-grown meat. I'll be surprised if that process is anywhere near an energy efficient as actual livestock, which isn't saying much.

David Trammel's picture

"I haven't tried to get any real data on it, but I'm sure the ratio of energy and other resources put into producing these patties relative to their caloric output is quite unbalanced. The Next Big Thing is going to be lab-grown meat. I'll be surprised if that process is anywhere near an energy efficient as actual livestock, which isn't saying much."

Here are some numbers on meat substitutes' energy and carbon costs

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/fake-meat-better-you-or-environment...

"“Those companies make wild claims, but they don’t back that up with any independent attestment,” Springmann said. “Their claims are based on third-party potential estimates of emissions.”

Even if meat alternative companies back their products up with more studies, they don’t offer the best emissions solution. Cellular-based meat alternatives release five times the emissions as chicken, putting their emissions just under beef. Plant-based meat alternatives produce the same amount of emissions as chicken — which are about five times the emissions of legumes and vegetables.

Springmann recommends a flexitarian diet heavy on vegetables and legumes with a heavily reduced portion of meat. This amount of meat would equal one 100-gram burger (or 3.5 ounce) per week or choosing to consume chicken or fish just twice a week. This heavy reduction in meat consumption presents a steep learning curve for much of the global population. But it’s not infeasible. “It’s about perspective and spices,” Springmann said."