Lets be real: unless fake-meat products become at least the same price as equivalent meat options whats the point?

How big is the market for non-ideological vegans/vegetarians that are shopping for meat alternatives?

Most people are not ideological with their food. Most people will only stop eating meat when it becomes too expensive to afford. Simple as that.

What is the status you gain for being seen eating a beyond burger in 2026?

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gpm 7 hours ago | parent | next [-]

As a rare non-ideological vegetarian (I just really don't like the taste) you've got the market for this completely backwards. Beyond meat is for ideological vegetarians and vegans who like the taste. Non-ideological ones who would really prefer not to have a meat substitute.

At something like 6% of the world the market the population of ideological vegetarians and vegans is huge. With another handful of percent who are ideologically opposed to eating meat on certain days but not entirely vegetarian.

PS. Your claim that "most people are not ideologic with their food"... Not all food ideology is related to vegetarianism so it's not terribly relevant but I think this claim is just wrong. Islam + Hinduisim + Buddhism make up nearly half the world and all have pretty strong religious ideological beliefs about food, and a non-trivial fraction of the quarter of the world that is christian has at least a few scruples like avoiding meat during lent. And that's just people preaching religious beliefs not less documented ideologies like believing real men eat their steak raw or whatever.

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627467 7 hours ago | parent [-]

> Beyond meat is for ideological vegetarians and vegans who like the taste.

I must be in bubble or have a very different definition of "idiological": of the dozens of vegans/vegetarians I know none would actively seek the "taste" of industrialized "ready-made" "meat replacement". They may put up with it if must be, but seek it? Desire it?

	▲	tsimionescu 4 hours ago \| parent [-]
		By definition, if you're a vegan or vegetarian for strictly ideological reasons, you still like the taste and feel of meat. So, compared to a vegetarian or vegan who is doing it for other reasons, you're statistically far more likely to seek meat substitutes. Now, this relies on considering people "ideological vegans/vegetarians" if their only motivation for not eating meat is ideology. This means that the huge amount of Hindu Indians who are ideologically opposed to eating meat don't count, since even without this ideological motivation, they would still have traditional and social and supply reasons to not eat meat.

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dataflow 4 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

> Lets be real: unless fake-meat products become at least the same price as equivalent meat options what's the point?

If you were to make fake plant-based products that were (a) noticeably healthier than meat, and (b) indistinguishable from meat taste-wise (or better-tasting), I'm quite confident a lot of people would pay a premium for that.

The problem is the current products just don't deliver that. All they deliver is eco-friendliness at a premium, at which point they're basically offering something more akin to the optional climate fee on flight tickets.