For many years we have witnessed the spread of different types of vegetable burgers: from local menus to supermarket shelves, the choice is wide, including vegetarian and vegan options. In fact, more and more people are choosing to consume less meat for reasons of health and environmental sustainability. In line with this trend, the market in recent years has seen two main players revolutionize the concept of vegetable hamburger , proposing a product which, unlike its predecessors, has the precise aim of recalling beef in appearance and flavour.
The era of fake meat
From recent studies it would seem that choosing the vegetable burger can generate 90% less greenhouse gas emissions and 93% less impact on land use for the same weight, and requires 45% less energy and 99% less water.
At the moment there are two companies that have primacy on the vegetable burger market, both from the United States, and they are studying in the laboratory two different products that compete for leadership in the fake meat market . In terms of ingredients the two burgers are both vegan and quite similar, but differ in the main protein source.
In one case , pea protein is used and beetroot juice is used to simulate the color of a rare hamburger. For the other variant, however, soy leghemoglobin was isolated as a protein source, a key ingredient for simulating the appearance and flavor of meat.
All these products differ from the classic vegetable and cereal-based alternatives because they are not primarily aimed at vegetarian and vegan consumers, but at an omnivorous target that wants to replace meat without giving up its flavour, appearance and texture.
Whether it's for a veg audience or a wider target, it's now certain that a vegetarian and vegan offer must be an integral part of your menu. Here's an idea to get you started: Salomon FoodWorld's vegan burger, ready in 2 minutes with Combi Wave .