Are Plant-Based Products Worth the Hype? We Tried Them

How many times have you walked into your local grocery store and felt overwhelmed by the sheer number of food options there are? There are various ways to narrow down your choices, like cost, quality, or flavor. One factor that is often overlooked is assessing the climate impact of the products you purchase. Some of the most harmful foods we purchase are those produced by ruminants, such as cows and sheep. Producing dairy, beef, and mutton results in more greenhouse gas emissions than pork or poultry, not just because of cow belching, but also due to the size of the animals, the food they consume, and the energy expended to produce a hamburger or fermented cheese. These animals produce methane, which traps 28 times the heat of carbon dioxide. If you are seeking environmentally conscious food options to help limit your carbon footprint and improve the environment, there are grocery stores that hold interesting alternatives. For example, Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods are two stores that are known to house unique goods made from plants and other vegan ingredients, while still staying true to the great taste of our usual favorite foods.

Alexandra Gomez and Natalie Dias, two members of the Bay Area Youth Climate Summit, bought food samples from each store to see if their vegan and plant-based options were worth buying. 

Trader Joe’s Review

Gomez visited Trader Joe’s and chose two snacks and a dessert. Her snacks of choice were mini pretzel twists and dark chocolate sunflower seed butter cups. Although there were many sweet treats to choose from, Gomez ultimately opted for the chocolate, non-dairy frozen dessert made with coconut milk.

Three products that Gomez bought from Trader Joe’s. Salty, crunchy, and most importantly delicious: she found the mini pretzel twists mimicked the taste of her favorite non-vegan snack, making for a great alternative. Made from primarily wheat flour, sunflower oil, and yeast, the pretzels made for a yummy snack and contained fewer ingredients than some of her go-to pretzel brands on her local store’s shelves. The snack was very affordable, $2.69 for a medium-sized bag filled to the brim, falling under the price range of similar snacks that are non-vegan. Ultimately, Gomez expressed that if both the plant-based pretzels and her everyday pretzels sat next to each other at the store, she would go for the vegan alternative! If you love to snack on pretzels, these plant-based ones are a must-try.

Rating: 10/10 

Her next grab was the dark chocolate sunflower seed butter cups. The sweets’ main components are dark chocolate, sunflower seeds, cocoa butter, and sea salt. Although they did have some attributes that were similar to her favorite peanut butter cups, she found the sunflower butter to be a bit overpowering. The differences in the taste between her favorite peanut butter cups and the plant-based option were too apparent. For $4.49, the snack suffices as a treat to satisfy a sweet craving, though if you are looking for your average peanut butter cup, Gomez says that this snack may not be the most sought-after pick on the shelves.

Rating: 6/10 

Lastly, Gomez topped her snacks with some flavorful ice cream. The chocolate, non-dairy frozen dessert made with coconut milk was very light and creamy. Standing at a price of $4.29, the pint of ice cream was mildly sweet and the chocolate flavoring was not too strong. Gomez likes her vanilla ice cream, but this frozen dessert made her question her list of favorite treats. Oftentimes, Gomez tends to steer away from the chocolate treats on the shelves, but the ice cream – made from mostly coconut milk/water, cocoa powder, and salt – was super delicious and made for a great snack on a hot summer day. Gomez would definitely recommend the frozen dessert to any chocolate lover and believes the treat is a great plant-based alternative for your everyday ice cream!

Rating: 8/10 

Whole Foods Review

Dias traveled to Whole Foods to find a snack, a plant-based meat product, and a miscellaneous item to try. She was shocked by the number of dairy-free options available, even finding an entire dessert section dedicated to this.

Dairy-free cheese and dessert sections in Whole Foods. She started off with vegan cheddar-flavor star puffed crackers, made from rice and chickpea flour. The “cheese” flavor likely comes from the tomato, mushroom, and beet concentrate. Surprisingly, these crackers taste very cheesy and are fun to eat, and for $3.69 the bag has few air pockets. Goldfish and Cheez-Its, the most similar products to these crackers, also fall in the $3-4 price range, making this snack worth it. The crackers taste similar to Goldfish, but with less artificial cheese flavor. Dias enjoyed the taste and would recommend these for a midnight snack.

Rating: 10/10

Her next taste test was her miscellaneous item, a bag of plant-based Parmesan! Dias loves eating cheese, particularly Gouda (which Whole Foods has vegan options for), but Parmesan is a staple cheese in one of her favorite dishes: pasta. This cheese alternative, made of potato and coconut oil, is on the lower end of the Parmesan price range. It only costs $3.79. As for taste, Dias finds the alternative overly cheesy, as if the brand is trying to compensate for it not being Parmesan. While the cheese does not smell as good as it looks, she finds the taste preferable for dishes needing a stronger cheesy taste, perhaps lasagna or a pasta topping. On its own, however, the “cheese” is too strong. She recommends trying the other alternatives instead.

Rating: 3/10

Finally — the meat alternative. Dias sampled barbecue lime plant-based carnitas, a replacement for pork. The carnitas cost $8.99, making them economical, as most carnitas cost upwards of $13. While pork is not a ruminant, reducing meat consumption in any way is beneficial for methane reduction. This product is made of sweet potato and soybean, and after grilling for 5 minutes (very reminiscent of grilling actual meat), Dias ended up with a large plate well worth the cost. The carnitas are chewy and with a more chicken-like texture, but Dias could taste the barbecue and lime. While she did not see a large resemblance between these carnitas and actual pork, she found the product edible, if you ignore the chewiness. Dias believes they are best eaten with a side or sauce. 

Rating: 5/10

While veganism is often associated with abstaining from meat and dairy, there are plenty of alternatives for people with all dietary standards. These substitutes are not just for vegans: eating one plant-based day a week is equivalent to taking your car off the road for 5 weeks! And based on Dias and Gomez’s tests, vegan and plant-based options cost less than dairy and meat products. While you might not consider one simple substitute as impactful, the reality is that eating less ruminant products, even once, reduces demand and eventually supply. Plant-based products can be tastier, cheaper, and more sustainable than everyday foods, as long as people are willing to try them.

Conduct Your Own Taste Test

Do you want to taste test plant-based foods? High school interns at Stanford recommended their favorite alternatives and vegan items:

Coconut yogurt	Almond / oat / soy / coconut milk	Lentil products (dal)	Jackfruit meat
Agar agar / aquafaba / pectin jelly	Hummus	Vegan marshmallows	Impossible patties
Enoki mushrooms	Margerine

Email us with the results of your taste test to be featured in an article! bayareaycs@gmail.com