> Vegans wants meat eaters to eat this thing to prevent animal harm.

I’m a vegan of nearly 25 years. My reasons are my own. I don’t care what others eat. Eat a pig, a horse, a dog, cotton candy, pomegranate. To paraphrase Thomas Jefferson, it neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg. But I’m doubtful there are other vegans out there who want carnivores to switch to eating processed foods like this. For my family and most vegans I know, these artificial meats are useful primarily in social situations where vegans and omnivores gather.

I like the convenience of a protein substitute on the rare occasion that I eat outside my home and am sorry to see these businesses floundering. But if they went away tomorrow, I wouldn’t rue the failure of a grand conspiracy to force alternative food choices on the unsuspecting masses.

> stupid idea

Economically unsustainable, maybe, but stupid?

There are in fact a lot of vegans who do want meat eaters to consume less meat, for the same ethical or environmental reasons we don’t eat meat ourselves. Doesn’t require being an activist to want these products to see more mainstream adoption.

Given the choice between non-processed food (meat) and ultra—high-processed food (fake meat), the former is the much healthier option.

Fortunately, though, the choice is not binary in that one could choose non-meat, non-processed foods, if one wanted.

> non-processed food (meat) and ultra—high-processed food (fake meat), the former is the much healthier option.

I mean sure if you are comparing a chop from grass fed sheep from somewhere like wales (or good quality horse meat) to something like a vegan burger, then yeah.

but comparing a mystery meat burger to fake meat, no.

Even if fake meat tasted better and cost less, people would still eat meat too. I like chicken more than potatoes, yet I still eat potatoes.

Fake meat's best outcome would be for it to be enjoyed as much as meat, but it couldn't replace it. It would just be another thing to experience.

This. I'm not sure who expected that some "fake" meat came along and somehow everyone switched to it.

We're used to eating meat and most have been eating it their entire lives. It's unrealistic to think that most would switch in a few years.

Swapping to fake meats, even meat grown in a lab will probably takes decades at the minimum.

It's not the taste i have a problem with but the nutritional value. Most meat replacement products taste decent to me but they're high in fat (seed oils) and lower in protein than meat (and lower quality protein).

Like many startups it got hyped to make those exiting at the right time rich, but remove the hype and the product folds as cannot deliver (yet?) on such lofty expectations. Even if technology can be made to work eventually, it will struggle to overcome this feeling of a letdown. My 2c.

I think that’s the issue isn’t it, the sales aren’t living up the hype.

We’ll, no shit, it was sold as the answer to everything and it turns out that it’s just another addition to the food market with some appeal to some people.

I hope that it doesn’t disappear, basically because it make my life easier. But the takeaway from this should probably be along the lines of being skeptic all of the hype, always.