"It even lays eggs"... That's the fake final line to Tyson's fake chicken announcement. America's biggest meat company officially rolled out "Raised & Rooted — Nuggets Made With Plants!" It's a direct shot at Beyond Meat, the faux-"meat" pioneer whose stock is enjoying one of the best 6-week starts in history (up 464% since its May 2nd IPO). Tyson used to be an investor in Beyond, now it's imitating it.
It really looks like a chicken nugget... but there's no chicken. It's a mix of pea protein, egg white, bamboo (not just a panda thing), and golden flaxseed. That's the vegetarian option. Its reduce-tarian product is the "Blended Burger," which still has some beef, but it's diluted with some veggie stuff.
Can anyone make meatless meat?... The race is on to whip together some plant by-products in a bowl and somehow make it sticky enough for a respectable burger patty. Here's who's getting in besides Tyson and Beyond:
- Impossible Foods: Still-private maker of the Insta-famous "Impossible Burger."
- KFC: The chicken king launched "The Imposter" in the UK on Thursday, a Quorn (fungus-based meat) fillet sandwich that looks like chicken.
- Nestlé: Just revealed an "Awesome Burger".
- Campbell Soup: Announced yesterday it plans to somehow take the animal out of bone broth.