Tyson Is Misleading Customers With Its New ‘100 Percent Plant-Based’ Nuggets
Tyson calling products containing egg and potentially dairy 'plant-based' misleads customers into thinking a product is more ethical and better for the planet and for human health than it really is.
BRIAN KATEMAN: ‘Tyson Foods, one of the world’s largest food companies, has launched what it calls a “plant-based” product line. But while the news is welcome, it isn’t actually “plant-based.” Raised & Rooted, Tyson’s new brand offering alternative protein products, includes a pea-based nugget that contains egg (and possibly milk). Despite this, the company has referred to it as “100 percent plant-based” in a press release and describes it as “plant-based” on its website. A global meat company branching out to vegetarian nuggets is certainly a step in the right direction…
[But] calling products containing egg (and potentially dairy) “plant-based” is a type of green-and-humane washing. Plant-based is the gold standard — it communicates to customers that their food is more environmentally sustainable, cruelty-free and largely detached from the many problems associated with factory farming. To use these credentials incorrectly is to mislead customers into thinking a product is more ethical and better for the planet and for human health than it really is.
It dilutes the important features that differentiate true plant-based foods from products containing ingredients derived from animals… This could lead to someone who follows a strict vegan diet mistaking the nuggets for vegan, and unwittingly consuming eggs (or dairy) — which is why the meaning of the label of “plant-based” must be upheld. Confusing labeling does a disservice to existing brands that clearly label their plant-based products as such…
Tyson’s deceptive use of “plant-based” risks causing confusion where clear lines have been drawn. It’s now widely understood that “plant-based” foods are vegan — meaning foods that come from plants and don’t contain animal ingredients such as meat, eggs or dairy. This is how consumers understand and navigate what they’re eating, and how brands have historically marketed their vegan products… Other companies may be using the label “plant-based” inappropriately, but it’s especially problematic that Tyson is using the label in this way’. SOURCE…
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