“I want to eat something that’s real. That’s the real thing that came from the Earth, from the planet that was actually intended for us to be eating. Not out of a lab… made of chemicals, made by — implanted with chips. I don’t want to eat Bill Gates’s plate of fake meat, I don’t.” 

In yet another attempt to mar the soaring popularity of vegan foods, a Newsmax producer has claimed that the Impossible Burger is “planted with chips”

The comment was made by senior producer Ilona Braverman on Eric Bolling’s The Balance during a segment called “meat eaters vs. vegans”.

It started with the host saying he “can’t tell the difference in taste” between Burger King’s beef burger and the Impossible Burger, which is plant-based.

However, Braverman objected to this statement. She said: “This isn’t about taste.

“It’s about knowing you’re eating something that was made in a lab.”

Bolling chimed in: “If it tastes the same and it’s healthier…”

But, Braverman dismissed it. She continued: “No, no. That’s not the point.

“I think the point is this is made in a lab. It’s — Bill Gates has decided that all of us have to eat man-made meat. I want the real thing. I want it to come from the real source. It’s not about the way it tastes.”

She added sarcastically: “I mean congratulations for making something that tastes a little bit like the original.

“I want to eat something that’s real. That’s the real thing that came from the Earth, from the planet that was actually intended for us to be eating. Not out of a lab that’s made of I don’t know what. Made of chemicals, made by — implanted with chips. I don’t want to eat Bill Gates’s plate of fake meat, I don’t.”

As a rebuttal to Braverman’s remarks, Bolling noted that Impossible is soy-based. “Yeah they’re mixed with other stuff, but they’re not grown in a lab, they’re actually, really from the Earth.”

Braverman retorted by asking Bolling, “Do you know what else was made in a lab?”

 She answered it herself: “A little virus, that came of a lab. A little virus that took the planet down for two years.”

In a wild segment, Newsmax producer claims the Impossible Burger is "planted with chips" pic.twitter.com/Q18t76BGrL

— Jason Campbell (@JasonSCampbell) October 14, 2022

‘Real’ reactions

The video clip drew thousands of reactions on Twitter, as netizens clearly had a field day making jokes of the misinformation

“Great. A burger enhanced with Fritos. Sounds delicious,” wrote one user.

“Kyle Kinane somewhere: ‘wait the impossible burger was made by Bill Gates _and_ it comes with chips _already inside it_? Sounds metal, I’ll have two,’” added another.

A third commented: “I want to eat “the real thing” while discussing the meat at Burger King…”

 Is plant-based meat really better for you and the planet?

Like all foods, plant-based meat does have some impact on the environment, but it doesn’t come anywhere close to the way meat impacts the planet.

According to Impossible Foods, its soy-based burger uses 87% less water, takes 96% less land, and has 89% lower greenhouse gas emissions than a beef burger.

A recent Oxford study estimating the environmental implications of thousands of food products found that ‘many meat alternatives had a fifth to less than a tenth of the environmental impact of meat-based equivalents’.

It screened 57,000 food products from supermarkets across the UK and Ireland.

Researchers considered greenhouse gas emissions, water stress, land use, and eutrophication potential (a metric that refers to over-fertilization of water bodies, which ultimately kills other beings) to tabulate the environmental scores.

Oxford Professor of Population Health, Professor Peter Scarborough said: “ For the first time, we have a transparent and comparable method for assessing the environmental footprint of multi-ingredient processed foods.

“This work could support tools that help consumers make more environmentally sustainable food purchasing decisions. More importantly, it could prompt retailers and food manufacturers to reduce the environmental impact of the food supply thereby making it easier for all of us to have healthier, more sustainable diets.”

A separate study funded by the US National Institutes of Health, concluded that plant-based meats are healthy. They’re a good source of fiber, folate, and iron as well as less saturated fat than beef.

On the flip side, some products may have less protein, zinc, and vitamin B12 than animal-based meat – as well as a high amount of salt.

How healthy is an Impossible Burger?

Reviewing the nutritional profile of an Impossible Burger showed that the product contains an impressive amount of nutrients such as iron, zinc, niacin, riboflavin, vitamin B12, and vitamin B6, all of which are added during processing.

Moreover, it provides the same amount of protein as 80% lean ground beef and is lower in calories and total fat.

However, Impossible Burgers also contain a high amount of added salt.

In addition, the heme (the ingredient that adds to the flavor and color of the burger and makes it “bleed” like a beef burger when cut) has been deemed Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) by the FDA. Its long-term safety is unknown.

• Read: Here’s why Lizzo is vegan – and it’s not to lose weight

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