Beyond Meat products are becoming popular in restaurants, grocery stores and fast-food chains, but how healthy is the plant-based meat alternative? 

By Allie Murray

Since its release in 1942, Canada’s Food Guide suggested that Canadians eat between two to three servings of meat or alternatives a day. In early 2019, Health Canada released an updated version of the food guide, which moved away from the recommendation of meat products and suggested eating more plant-based products instead. 

The new food guide recommendations are why Rena Mendelson, a professor in Ryerson University’s School of Food and Nutrition, believes Beyond Meat products have become so popular.

“You see the new Canada food guidelines recommend a plant-based diet, which doesn’t mean vegetarian necessarily. It means eating more foods that are plant-based and reducing our overall intake of animal-based foods,” she said. “Beyond Meat is a product that gives people the sense that they’re moving in the plant-based direction without giving up eating hamburgers that they like.” 

Mendelson explained that while Beyond Meat products have their benefits, they also have downsides.

“It’s a reasonably good substitute, but it’s high in fat, it’s high in calories, it’s high in sodium, it’s actually high in saturated fats even though it’s a plant based product; but it is high in protein as well,” said Mendelson.

Novella Lui, a registered dietician and nutrition consultant with Live to Nourish, adds that while Beyond Meat may appear healthy, it is still a processed product that is made up of about 20 ingredients. A few of those ingredients include pea protein isolate, expeller-pressed canola oil, refined coconut oil, flavouring and more.

“In order to boost the meaty flavour and texture [of] Beyond Meat products, a substance [is used] that is naturally available in soy roots but never used as a food product, called leghemoglobin,” explained NAD Nutrition registered dietician Nadine Khoury. “However, the form used has been produced artificially from yeast making it a genetically modified product.”

Khoury adds that a lot of the products contain less healthy refined oils, food additives, flavours and sugars, and may include common allergens like soy, wheat and nuts.

Healthy alternatives versus the fast-food industry

Beyond Meat has become frequently found in restaurants and fast-food chains, including Tim Hortons, which offered Beyond Meat products as a limited time offer. The chain ended up pulling back on  Beyond Meat products in Canada, except for locations in Ontario and British Columbia.

“We have particularly seen positive reaction to our Beyond Meat offerings in Ontario and B.C., especially in breakfast,” an email statement from the Tim Hortons PR team reads. “The Beyond Meat breakfast sandwiches will continue to be available in Ontario and B.C., which is about 60 per cent of Tim Hortons restaurants in Canada.”

Speaking to the fast-food industry’s increased offering of Beyond Meat burgers, Lui notes that nutritionally speaking, the Beyond Meat burgers from fast-food chains aren’t much different than a regular burger. 

According to Lui, an A&W Beyond Meat burger has 1,110 milligrams of sodium, which is more than half of one’s daily recommended sodium intake. It also has 500 calories, 29 grams of fat and 22 grams of protein. 

On the other hand, a Teen Burger from A&W of the same serving size also has 500 calories, but has 26 grams of fat, 25 grams of protein and 200 milligrams less sodium at 910 milligrams.

Environmental and lifestyle benefits of Beyond Meat

While the believed popularity of Beyond Meat products has stemmed from the updated food guide, the plant-based alternative has also become a go-to meal for vegetarians, vegans and others who refrain from eating meat. 

For a lot of vegetarians, Beyond Meat has been a solution for the ones who want to enjoy the taste of a hamburger without actually eating meat. Sydney Borton, a consumer of Beyond Meat products explained that Beyond Meat is one of the only vegetarian meat options that fits that criteria.

“I like that a lot of them don’t taste like typical veggie burgers or vegan meat alternatives,” Borton said, noting that a lot of vegetarian burgers taste dry because they’re made with soybeans, chickpeas and other dry ingredients. “But the Beyond Meat line of products is trying to do something different. They don’t taste dry or like a meat alternative, but they don’t taste exactly like real meat either. It’s a weird in between, but I really like it.”

In addition to the health benefits, Khoury also says that Canadians should start shifting towards eating plant-based products for the environmental benefits they pose.

“Another benefit is that they contain more fibre than meat products,” she said. “Eating less industrially farmed and processed meats is better for the environment and for our health.”

Mendelson, Lui and Khoury all note that in transitioning to a plant-based diet, Canadians should add more foods such as legumes like beans, lentils and chickpeas, soy products like tofu and tempeh, and whole grains.