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I think there's an argument made that some packaging can be confusing. They might think the term 'beyond meat' is clear enough but not everyone will. Perhaps st

by taysic 8y ago

I think there's an argument made that some packaging can be confusing. They might think the term 'beyond meat' is clear enough but not everyone will. Perhaps stores need to stock them in different locations - in fact, that's how I nearly always see it done. I think supermarkets have ample incentive to not deceive their customers. At the same time, disallowing vegetarian companies from using the words 'milk' or 'meat' seems like complete overreach. Vegetarians / vegans think of these products in terms of what they are an imitation of, and they want to understand what the product is going for. It's incredibly useful to be able to use these terms. Not to mention they are already the way people colloquially refer to them. I don't think the 'real' versions should have a monopoly on those words at all.

frgtpsswrdlame 8y ago
>At the same time, disallowing vegetarian companies from using the words 'milk' or 'meat' seems like complete overreach. Vegetarians / vegans think of these products in terms of what they are an imitation of, and they want to understand what the product is going for. It's incredibly useful to be able to use these terms. Not to mention they are already the way people colloquially refer to them. I don't think the 'real' versions should have a monopoly on those words at all. Well let's take it back to my chicken example. I'm raising antibiotic-loaded chickens in tiny cages. I want consumers to think of my meat and egg products in terms of what they are an imitation of - free range organic chicken products. I think this would be really useful to the consumer. It also seems unfair to me that only chicken which is actually free range or organic should have a monopoly on those terms. Should I be able to include 'free range' or 'organic' in my advertising? You see those chicken strips in my previous comment? What if instead of saying 'REAL MEAT' in big text and then below in smaller text '100% plant protein' - it said 'REAL ORGANIC' in big text and then below in smaller text it said 'cage raised'? It would obviously be wrong to attempt to confuse the consumer in that way. I think people here are confusing whether realistic meat substitutes are a good development (they are) and whether they're meat (they're not.) If we just flip this scenario and pretend it's Tyson using the same advertising practices as Beyond Meat it becomes obvious how wrong this really is. >Not to mention they are already the way people colloquially refer to them. I have never heard anyone refer to a patty of soy and pea protein (or beets or heme or what have you) as 'beef' or 'meat.' In my experience they call it a 'veggie burger.'
- taysic 8y ago
  I don't think your argument is very strong. Calling something 'free range' when it isn't would be akin to calling something purple when its orange. It has a particular meaning. However, 'milk', 'meat', etc already have expanded meanings as shown by how people use them colloquially. They are often used in adjective form to describe something with a particular quality (milky, meaty) because they are such broad words. I completely agree 'Real meat' was confusing. We don't disagree there. Seems like a deceptive advertising compliant is more appropriate there. > I have never heard anyone refer to a patty of soy and pea protein (or beets or heme or what have you) as 'beef' or 'meat.' In my experience they call it a 'veggie burger.' You just disproved yourself - they call it a veggie burger if it looks like a burger, veggie sausage if it looks like sausage, almond milk if it looks like milk, nut cheese if it looks like cheese etc. Also you just need to hang around vegetarians more to hear 'veggie beef'. In fact, vegetarians just call it 'meat', 'beef' etc to their friends as long as they all know what they're talking about.
  - frgtpsswrdlame 8y ago
    >You just disproved yourself - they call it a veggie burger if it looks like a burger I don't think this disproves me at all. Consumers understand what sort of product they're buying when purchasing a 'veggie burger' and they'd probably know what they're buying if they were purchasing 'beef flavored veggie crumbles' or 'plant-based beef crumbles' or 'veggie burger crumble.' All of these would be totally clear. When you sell that vegetable based product as 'beefy beef crumbles' though I think you're crossing a line. Maybe we'll meet the meat industry halfway and allow 'veggie meat' and 'veggie beef' but I totally get why they're pushing for this because at the very least the terms 'meat' and 'beef' shouldn't be used unamended.

by taysic 8y ago

frgtpsswrdlame 8y ago

>At the same time, disallowing vegetarian companies from using the words 'milk' or 'meat' seems like complete overreach. Vegetarians / vegans think of these products in terms of what they are an imitation of, and they want to understand what the product is going for. It's incredibly useful to be able to use these terms. Not to mention they are already the way people colloquially refer to them. I don't think the 'real' versions should have a monopoly on those words at all. Well let's take it back to my chicken example. I'm raising antibiotic-loaded chickens in tiny cages. I want consumers to think of my meat and egg products in terms of what they are an imitation of - free range organic chicken products. I think this would be really useful to the consumer. It also seems unfair to me that only chicken which is actually free range or organic should have a monopoly on those terms. Should I be able to include 'free range' or 'organic' in my advertising? You see those chicken strips in my previous comment? What if instead of saying 'REAL MEAT' in big text and then below in smaller text '100% plant protein' - it said 'REAL ORGANIC' in big text and then below in smaller text it said 'cage raised'? It would obviously be wrong to attempt to confuse the consumer in that way. I think people here are confusing whether realistic meat substitutes are a good development (they are) and whether they're meat (they're not.) If we just flip this scenario and pretend it's Tyson using the same advertising practices as Beyond Meat it becomes obvious how wrong this really is. >Not to mention they are already the way people colloquially refer to them. I have never heard anyone refer to a patty of soy and pea protein (or beets or heme or what have you) as 'beef' or 'meat.' In my experience they call it a 'veggie burger.'

taysic 8y ago
I don't think your argument is very strong. Calling something 'free range' when it isn't would be akin to calling something purple when its orange. It has a particular meaning. However, 'milk', 'meat', etc already have expanded meanings as shown by how people use them colloquially. They are often used in adjective form to describe something with a particular quality (milky, meaty) because they are such broad words. I completely agree 'Real meat' was confusing. We don't disagree there. Seems like a deceptive advertising compliant is more appropriate there. > I have never heard anyone refer to a patty of soy and pea protein (or beets or heme or what have you) as 'beef' or 'meat.' In my experience they call it a 'veggie burger.' You just disproved yourself - they call it a veggie burger if it looks like a burger, veggie sausage if it looks like sausage, almond milk if it looks like milk, nut cheese if it looks like cheese etc. Also you just need to hang around vegetarians more to hear 'veggie beef'. In fact, vegetarians just call it 'meat', 'beef' etc to their friends as long as they all know what they're talking about.
- frgtpsswrdlame 8y ago
  >You just disproved yourself - they call it a veggie burger if it looks like a burger I don't think this disproves me at all. Consumers understand what sort of product they're buying when purchasing a 'veggie burger' and they'd probably know what they're buying if they were purchasing 'beef flavored veggie crumbles' or 'plant-based beef crumbles' or 'veggie burger crumble.' All of these would be totally clear. When you sell that vegetable based product as 'beefy beef crumbles' though I think you're crossing a line. Maybe we'll meet the meat industry halfway and allow 'veggie meat' and 'veggie beef' but I totally get why they're pushing for this because at the very least the terms 'meat' and 'beef' shouldn't be used unamended.