I'm sure this is unintentional, but be aware that denigradting immitation meat products is a common source of bullying directed at people transitioning towards plant based diets.
Our food cravings adapt to what our bodies identify as having the nutrients we need. Most people who eat a plant based diet for 5-10 years rarely eat meat replacements. But in the beginning, these replacements are great for people that are still learning meal planning. Outside of that, some people have health issues, like cholesterol, where replacing some of their meat intake with immitation meats can be beneficial. Others like to reduce their carbon footprint by eating occassional plant based meals. These individuals do not experience the change in cravings and taste so they still appreciate the taste and texture of something similar to the meat they still consume at other meals.
To put some quantitative analysis on that, while sales of immitation meat products have increased significantly, we are not seeing significant increases in the number of US residents identifying as vegan(strict vegetarian) and only modest increases in those identifying as vegetarian. This means that much of the immitation meat consuption is done by those that are still eating an animal protein based diet.
Anecdotally, I am not a huge fan of those products and also find most traditional bean and root vegetable based meals more satisfying. But please keep in mind that many people are navigating their way towards a different way of eating and they can be very sensitive to harse words about their choices.
Our food cravings adapt to what our bodies identify as having the nutrients we need. Most people who eat a plant based diet for 5-10 years rarely eat meat replacements. But in the beginning, these replacements are great for people that are still learning meal planning. Outside of that, some people have health issues, like cholesterol, where replacing some of their meat intake with immitation meats can be beneficial. Others like to reduce their carbon footprint by eating occassional plant based meals. These individuals do not experience the change in cravings and taste so they still appreciate the taste and texture of something similar to the meat they still consume at other meals.
To put some quantitative analysis on that, while sales of immitation meat products have increased significantly, we are not seeing significant increases in the number of US residents identifying as vegan(strict vegetarian) and only modest increases in those identifying as vegetarian. This means that much of the immitation meat consuption is done by those that are still eating an animal protein based diet.
Anecdotally, I am not a huge fan of those products and also find most traditional bean and root vegetable based meals more satisfying. But please keep in mind that many people are navigating their way towards a different way of eating and they can be very sensitive to harse words about their choices.