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It's unfortunate for Soylent to end up in such a situation given how easily it could have been prevented. For me however it does not discount the product in th

It's unfortunate for Soylent to end up in such a situation given how easily it could have been prevented. For me however it does not discount the product in the least, and I would expect a rethinking of the production process to be posted soon in response.

jbarrow 13y ago
While it may not take away from the product itself, I think that this definitely shows some level of inexperience from the people behind Soylent. The idea is there, but the process hasn't been perfected. Unfortunately, when dealing with matters of health and sanitation, you don't have the luxury of trial-and-error iteration.
- seiji 13y ago
  some level They're just treating nutrition like we build databases. Ignore all relevant history, research, field knowledge and make up what you want for yourself. Iterate until downtime/heart issues stop.
gcb0 13y ago
they will fix that in the next agile iteration. ;)
DanBC 13y ago
> For me however it does not discount the product in the least You can get better products from reputable companies. Or you can buy this gloop, from a bunch of people who clearly have little clue about what they're doing.
- LukeWalsh 13y ago
  Perhaps I should clarify, I would hate to see this hurt the entire industry. If Soylent does not do a complete rethinking after what has happened I expect someone else to take their place.
  - DanBC 13y ago
    They're using a copacker now, which means a proper, approved, factory. So things should be much better for the actual product. I dislike the way the founder keeps saying “I want to be totally transparent,” - but only after someone has seen a rat or found mold or whatever. The algae stuff sounds interesting. Is anyone already working on it?
- dm2 13y ago
  > You can get better products from reputable companies. What products specifically?
  - DanBC 13y ago
    Ensure / fortisip / Optifast (as seen in the video in the submutted link, where the doctor tells him that liquid total food replacements have been available for decades) / etc etc etc. Here's Abbott Nutrition http://abbottnutrition.com/ http://abbottnutrition.com/ Here's Nutricia https://www.nutricia.co.uk/fortisip// https://www.nutricia.co.uk/fortisip// It's frustrating that this question is asked, and answered, every single time Soylent is mentioned, and people then dishonestly say that these products are somehow not meant to be used as a sole source of nutrition, even though that's how they're regulated and sold.
    - genwin 13y ago
      Yep. My mom got all her nutrition from Ensure for a couple months after stomach surgery. She lived.
    - dm2 13y ago
      Thanks, I'm going to try some Ensure. I've also been drinking Carnation Breakfast Essentials occasionally but I'm not sure how much different it is from drinking a glass of chocolate milk and a multivitamin.
- genwin 13y ago
  Plus, at least one of those products is available a block away from me at the supermarket.
justincormack 13y ago
It is not "unfortunate" it is incompetent. They basically do not know what they are doing. Why did they start manufacture when they were not set up properly?
- LukeWalsh 13y ago
  I think a lot of software startups do extremely similar things with customer privacy. In fact there are probably places where the security flaws are worse than anything Soylent is doing. That is not to excuse it, more to shed light on the fact that it is much more apparent when they are failing in the food industry.
  - justin66 13y ago
    > In fact there are probably places where the security flaws are worse than anything Soylent is doing. As an experiment, ask people whether they'd rather risk having their credit card number compromised or risk becoming violently ill from a foodborne illness. I bet they won't even ask the odds when they give their answer.
    - LukeWalsh 13y ago
      That's an excellent way to put it in perspective, I completely agree.
- theklub 13y ago
  I think they've gotten very lucky that no one has gotten seriously ill from that manufacturing first set up. Hopefully that has and will continue to improve.
joonix 13y ago
Perhaps they should have hired someone who knew anything about food production. Instead they hired a frat buddy to be a Chief of Customer Success. Hope he has experience handling foodborne illnesses.

jbarrow 13y ago

While it may not take away from the product itself, I think that this definitely shows some level of inexperience from the people behind Soylent. The idea is there, but the process hasn't been perfected. Unfortunately, when dealing with matters of health and sanitation, you don't have the luxury of trial-and-error iteration.

seiji 13y ago
some level They're just treating nutrition like we build databases. Ignore all relevant history, research, field knowledge and make up what you want for yourself. Iterate until downtime/heart issues stop.

gcb0 13y ago

they will fix that in the next agile iteration. ;)

DanBC 13y ago

> For me however it does not discount the product in the least You can get better products from reputable companies. Or you can buy this gloop, from a bunch of people who clearly have little clue about what they're doing.

LukeWalsh 13y ago
Perhaps I should clarify, I would hate to see this hurt the entire industry. If Soylent does not do a complete rethinking after what has happened I expect someone else to take their place.
- DanBC 13y ago
  They're using a copacker now, which means a proper, approved, factory. So things should be much better for the actual product. I dislike the way the founder keeps saying “I want to be totally transparent,” - but only after someone has seen a rat or found mold or whatever. The algae stuff sounds interesting. Is anyone already working on it?
dm2 13y ago
> You can get better products from reputable companies. What products specifically?
- DanBC 13y ago
  Ensure / fortisip / Optifast (as seen in the video in the submutted link, where the doctor tells him that liquid total food replacements have been available for decades) / etc etc etc. Here's Abbott Nutrition http://abbottnutrition.com/ http://abbottnutrition.com/ Here's Nutricia https://www.nutricia.co.uk/fortisip// https://www.nutricia.co.uk/fortisip// It's frustrating that this question is asked, and answered, every single time Soylent is mentioned, and people then dishonestly say that these products are somehow not meant to be used as a sole source of nutrition, even though that's how they're regulated and sold.
  - genwin 13y ago
    Yep. My mom got all her nutrition from Ensure for a couple months after stomach surgery. She lived.
  - dm2 13y ago
    Thanks, I'm going to try some Ensure. I've also been drinking Carnation Breakfast Essentials occasionally but I'm not sure how much different it is from drinking a glass of chocolate milk and a multivitamin.
genwin 13y ago
Plus, at least one of those products is available a block away from me at the supermarket.

justincormack 13y ago

It is not "unfortunate" it is incompetent. They basically do not know what they are doing. Why did they start manufacture when they were not set up properly?

LukeWalsh 13y ago
I think a lot of software startups do extremely similar things with customer privacy. In fact there are probably places where the security flaws are worse than anything Soylent is doing. That is not to excuse it, more to shed light on the fact that it is much more apparent when they are failing in the food industry.
- justin66 13y ago
  > In fact there are probably places where the security flaws are worse than anything Soylent is doing. As an experiment, ask people whether they'd rather risk having their credit card number compromised or risk becoming violently ill from a foodborne illness. I bet they won't even ask the odds when they give their answer.
  - LukeWalsh 13y ago
    That's an excellent way to put it in perspective, I completely agree.
theklub 13y ago
I think they've gotten very lucky that no one has gotten seriously ill from that manufacturing first set up. Hopefully that has and will continue to improve.

joonix 13y ago

Perhaps they should have hired someone who knew anything about food production. Instead they hired a frat buddy to be a Chief of Customer Success. Hope he has experience handling foodborne illnesses.