The Spectacular Rise and Fall of Fake Meat in America

Derek and Deena Shanker talk about the spectacular rise and fall of fake meat—and what it tells us about food, taste, politics, and technology.

 Bill Gates Wants Us to Eat 100% Synthetic Beef. He Has a Point

The billionaire says fake burgers could solve one of the world's biggest problems.

 Expensive, over-processed and flavourless: why vegans have fallen out of love with meat substitutes

After years of booming sales, vegan food products appear to be waning. Josh Barrie finds out more about our changing tastes...

 The Capitalist Way to Make Americans Stop Eating Meat

Carnivores are falling for the magic of a longer menu full of plant-based options.

 The Secret Ingredient That Could Save Fake Meat

I tried “bacon” made with lab-grown fat, and it was just as good as the real thing.

 This Is What Happens to Your Body When You Give Up Meat

Given how important meat has been to the human story, and how vegetarianism and veganism has done a takeover of your Instagram feed, you might wonder what happens to the human body if you walk away from it completely. Well, wonder no more.

 Which Fake Meat Is Best — And What Are Their Climate Impacts?

"Today's faux meats present a conundrum," says Romilly Hodges, MS, CNS, who directs nutrition programs at Dr. Kara Fitzgerald's functional-medicine clinic in Connecticut and serves on the board of the American Nutrition Association. "On one hand, reducing the consumption of carbon-heavy animal meats is a good idea for our environment. On the other hand, moving away from real foods to something manufactured with synthetic ingredients in a lab is not good for our health."

 Will Fake Meat Save Us?

Yes, the plant-based, beyond-meat food revolution is here and it seems to be taking over the North American diet. Whether you are frequenting your local Wendy’s, A&W, or Macdonald’s purveyor of fine eats, you are now being subliminally encouraged to “save the planet” by putting your mouth where your money is and purchasing one of the many meatless burger options.

There’s a New Source for Meat Substitutes: Fungi

Startups say fungus-based protein has many benefits over alternatives. Fungus-based protein, these companies say, can be produced from well-known food sources with less processing than plant-based products, which require heating and pressing to give them the look and texture of meat. And because fungi can be grown in large fermenters in labs, they say fungus-based protein may offer the same potential efficiency as lab-grown meat in terms of land, energy and water use.

Whole Foods CEO on plant-based meat boom: Good for the environment but not for your health

The [brands] who are capturing the imagination of people — and I'm not going to name these brands because I'm afraid I will be associated with the critique of it," says Mackey, "but some of these that are extremely popular now that are taking the world by storm, if you look at the ingredients, they are super, highly processed foods."

Embrace a Fake-Meat Future for Its Lesser-Known Benefits

This is good news, because the time has come to scale up fake meat, fast. Why? Because in the fight to stave off climate change, meat replacement is—forgive me—one of the lowest-hanging fruits.

Fake Meat Will Save Us

Until we have real leadership on climate, changing what we eat is the biggest thing we can do to save the planet.

Impossible and Beyond: How healthy are these meatless burgers?

It turns out the answer may depend on whether your priorities lie with your personal health or the health of the planet.

The rise of meatless meat, explained

Meat alternatives are clearly having a moment — and it’s offering us a glimpse into a different future for meat. Every year, more than 9 billion animals in the US are raised and killed on factory farms. Our factory farm system has contributed to a range of problems, from increasing antibiotic resistance to the climate crisis. Proponents of meat alternatives say they could help change that equation. Let’s sort the hype from the reality. Here are nine questions you might have had about meatless meat products and their leap to the mainstream.

The trouble with fake meat

From beetroot burgers to hoisin ‘duck’, imitation meats are everywhere. But are these substitutes any healthier for us to eat?

Will Cows Be Obsolete?

Let’s imagine a world in which some of these companies succeed. They’ve hit full cow, at a price point that’s comparable to slaughtered beef. In five years, will we all eat plant burgers at our Fourth of July barbecues?

Beyond Meat Fever Turns the Tiny Pea Into America’s Hot New Crop

There is, it would seem, nothing but bleak news in U.S. farm country. Soybean prices are down. Corn is also still way below its highs, as is wheat. Then there’s the trade war with China, which has cost farmers access to one of their biggest markets, and the non-stop spring rains, which inundated fields. But there is one bright spot: the pea. Long an afterthought for most farmers -- largely just something planted to help with crop rotations -- the tiny legume has suddenly gotten pulled into the alt-protein craze fueled by the likes of Beyond Meat Inc. and the Impossible Burger.

Beyond Meat goes public with a bang: 5 things to know about the plant-based meat maker

Beyond Meat has a surprising number of competitors and plans to expand around the globe.

Beyond Meat, Other Plant-Based Alternatives Still Have Long Growth Runway

The buzz surrounding plant-based meat startups Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods — with both aiming to challenge the conventional definition of what meat is with claims their products taste just like meat —has helped to fuel a bigger-than-ever appetite for meat alternatives of all kinds, at a time when consumers want more options on their plates. And the demand isn’t just coming from the likes of fast food chains like Carl’s Jr. and Burger King that have respectively rolled out their own Beyond Burger and Impossible Burger.

Fake Meat, Served Six Ways

AROUND THE TIME I turned 40, I decided to address the trifecta of concerns I had about climate change, animal rights, and my health: I went hard vegan. My doctor had been warning me to cut down on red meat, and I had also moved to a rural Japanese farming village populated by farmers growing a wide variety of veggies. They were delicious. After a while, the euphoria wore off and the culinary limitations of vegan food, especially when traveling, became challenging.

Fast Food Embraces Meatless Burgers, but There Aren’t Enough to Go Around

Fast-food restaurants are rushing to add meat-free burgers to their menus, hoping these higher-priced alternatives will help them capture additional traffic and dollars even as suppliers have struggled to fill all the orders.

Impossible Burger vs. beef: Which is better for the environment?

Replacing your usual burger with a plant-based version might not have as big an impact as you thought.

Meat-free diets linked with greater risk of breaking bones

People who don’t eat meat are more at risk of breaking bones, especially their hips, according to the largest study yet of this risk. The effect may stem from a lack of calcium and protein in their diet, as well as the fact that they tend to be thinner and so have less flesh to cushion a fall.

People Keep Saying We'll Eat Lab-Grown Meat by 2040, But We've Heard That Before

For decades, we've heard that lab-grown meat is just around the corner. So what's the hold up?

The Future of Protein Will Not Be Animal Meat

In this feature episode of If Our Bodies Could Talk, senior editor James Hamblin travels across California to learn about the science and psychology of diversifying people's protein-intake portfolio.

The impossible dream of mock meat

The dream of a veggie burger that actually tastes like a hamburger rather than a divot from the 10th fairway at Brookside has, apparently, become reality.

The plant-based craze sparks the appetite of companies and investors

It's time for agribusiness actors to take the plant-based path. Driven by an activist fund, Nestlé has just separated from the Herta delicatessen division to move towards more plant-based options. McDonald's will soon offer a vegetarian burger, and Danone wants to compete with French organic brand, Bjorg, in alternative "dairy" products.

The Race to Find Meatless Protein Products

Companies are searching for all sorts of substitutes. Mealworm powder, anyone?

We Really Need More Sustainable Meat Alternatives. Singapore Is On It.

From jackfruit meat to shrimp grown in labs, here's a guide to the clean meat alternatives coming to Asia.

Why plant protein is better for you than animal protein

It’d be great if a burger-a-day diet was healthy. Don’t get me wrong—it’s not the worst. You’ve got protein in there and hopefully some veggies on top (and on the side) , and even some fiber from the roll (you used whole grain, right?). Unfortunately, study after study shows that meat as a protein source just isn't that healthy. It's far better to get that necessary protein from plants. And yes, that association is a correlation, not a causation.

Will Slaughter-Free Meat Change the American Way of Eating?

Americans have a love affair with meat. Many romanticize the sizzle of a steak, the iron-pink bleed of a medium-rare burger, and the imagined farm they came from. It’s a love that has come at a cost: An enormous industrialized livestock system rife with animal abuse uses up massive amounts of land and water. It may also be responsible for nearly one-sixth of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Yet, tech-driven startups say they can offer a better way.

Will We Ever Stop Eating Animal Meat?

We need more than moral arguments against meat. We need a technological revolution in better, cleaner food.

Can artificial meat save the world?

Traditional chicken, beef, and pork production devours resources and creates waste. Meat-free meat might be the solution.