Mississippi is forbidding grocery stores from calling veggie burgers “veggie burgers”

[Lou]

You think they would stop with this kind of foolishness.
Has anyone ever bought a veggie burger by mistake?

Mississippi is forbidding grocery stores from calling veggie burgers "veggie burgers"

Proponents of the law say it’s necessary to avoid confusing consumers. That...doesn’t sound right.

www.vox.com

 

[Nekodaiden]

You think they would stop with this kind of foolishness.
Has anyone ever bought a veggie burger by mistake?

Mississippi is forbidding grocery stores from calling veggie burgers "veggie burgers"

Proponents of the law say it’s necessary to avoid confusing consumers. That...doesn’t sound right.

www.vox.com

Never. When I was an omni I on occasion bought rolls of vegan salami style tubes, and vegan patties made from beans,tubers etc. I was never confused.

That being said, a product like this...

found in the meat isle could fool someone who might be rushed and not paying attention. My main grocer has a separate section for meat alternatives but not every store does.

 

[Lou]

found in the meat isle could fool someone who might be rushed and not paying attention. My main grocer has a separate section for meat alternatives but not every store does.

What is the brand name of that product? Funky Fields?

 

[Mom2vegan]

Not long ago there was talk about making it illegal to call non-dairy milks "milk." I don't think that's going to make one bit of difference - people are still going to buy them. The success of these products has taken me a bit by surprise - now we can get them in any grocery store, and most grocery stores carry several different varieties right now and stock them right next to the dairy milk. Of course it helps that non-dairy "milk" is now so affordable.

Maybe soon non-animal "meats" will become affordable and more pallatable and truly be in competition with meat. I don't think it will matter if they're labeled as "burgers" or not.

 

[Celibataire]

The European Union already forbids soya milk from being described as soya milk; and it is planning legislation to forbid the use of the word 'burger' or 'sausage' for non-animal derived products. This should be no surprise to anyone.

 

[mavrick45]

the frightened industry is cornered and is lashing out

this is how we know we're on the right path

 

[Emma JC]

Earthling Ed had a good YouTube video out, the last couple of days, addressing the milk industry. It was quite good and worth watching.

Emma JC

 

[TofuRobot]

I don't think it will affect sales either, but it fries me that a common word that is used generically for lots of things can be copyrighted.

I mean, can you imagine if band-aid brand had some the same with "bandage?"

It's so stupid.

 

[Lou]

Colleen Patrick-Goudreau has a couple of essays on this subject. She mostly talks about milk and meat, not burgers. But still its silly and stupid and does make you think if the meat companies are so worried that they must be losing sales or money or something.

 

[Forest Nymph]

It's actually quite sinister and not as naive or ignorant as one might originally presume. There's the idea that someone might buy something by mistake. As there are certain grocery stores that mix it all up. While I don't mind soy milk being next to cows milk, honestly it bothers me if vegan sausages are with flesh products. It's supposed to encourage flexitarians or some crap, but I don't like it.

But NO I am fairly certain these industries have a basic understanding of advertising psychology. Or their advertising department does at least. They know words like meat, milk and burgers are subconsciously nostalgic, safe, and familiar. They want vegan products to be called something "weird" to once again alienate plant based lifestyles and reduce the risk of veganism being normalized. Once it's normalized the clock starts to count down for them.

So they should be fought over this and countersued in order to maintain equal rights over familiar comfortable food words that appeal to people on the fence, who could potentially be pushed either way.

 

[TofuRobot]

It's actually quite sinister and not as naive or ignorant as one might originally presume. There's the idea that someone might buy something by mistake. As there are certain grocery stores that mix it all up. While I don't mind soy milk being next to cows milk, honestly it bothers me if vegan sausages are with flesh products. It's supposed to encourage flexitarians or some crap, but I don't like it.

But NO I am fairly certain these industries have a basic understanding of advertising psychology. Or their advertising department does at least. They know words like meat, milk and burgers are subconsciously nostalgic, safe, and familiar. They want vegan products to be called something "weird" to once again alienate plant based lifestyles and reduce the risk of veganism being normalized. Once it's normalized the clock starts to count down for them.

So they should be fought over this and countersued in order to maintain equal rights over familiar comfortable food words that appeal to people on the fence, who could potentially be pushed either way.

Absolutely. For centuries people have referred to nut meats, and plant milks - for instance the milk that comes from a fire stick plant... How and why we are letting animal ag people own these words is mind boggling.

 

[Lou]

From Merriam Webster. Check out #2.

Definition of milk
(Entry 1 of 4)
1a: a fluid secreted by the mammary glands of females for the nourishment of their young
b(1): milk from an animal and especially a cow used as food by people
(2): a food product produced from seeds or fruit that resembles and is used similarly to cow's milk coconut milksoy milk
2: a liquid resembling milk in appearance: such as
a: the latex of a plant
b: the contents of an unripe kernel of grain
3: LACTATIONcows in milk


One of the common definitions of meat is just solid food. as opposed to liquid foods. Or to distinguish food from its coverings. Like walnuts and coconuts have meat inside.

But still, although I think this could be fought in court. and we would probably win ( I think similar laws in Washington state were put down), I'm not sure its worth it.

 

[Emma JC]

I have been having discussions in my local grocery store with the clerks (not with management so it isn't going anywhere) about their habit of spreading specific vegan/vegetarian products all over the store instead of keeping them in one location so that we know they are there. I don't shop in the cheese aisles anymore so didn't know that there was a new store brand dipping sauce on an "end aisle" over there that is cashew based. Expensive and very oily and yet vegan and there is nothing to point to it as such. The major cheese area has a whole vegan section (again I never saw it before this week) only the sign advertising it is a completely different colour and even though I was looking for it I couldn't see it and had to ask when it was right in front of me. The ony options in there were Daiya, one cashew based option and another company with slices.

Then they have a section that has tofu, lots of fake meats etc. Then there is the Natural Foods section which is where I normally shop and where all the organic foods are and lots of vegan ones too. Of course the Beyond Meat items are over in the meat section, another place I don't go and just going to look at them there made me feel a bit nauseous.

I am thinking of contacting the head office and asking if I can make up some kind of a vegan guide for their stores. They are a huge multiglomerate with 2300 stores in Canada.

Emma JC

 

[TofuRobot]

I have been having discussions in my local grocery store with the clerks (not with management so it isn't going anywhere) about their habit of spreading specific vegan/vegetarian products all over the store instead of keeping them in one location so that we know they are there. I don't shop in the cheese aisles anymore so didn't know that there was a new store brand dipping sauce on an "end aisle" over there that is cashew based. Expensive and very oily and yet vegan and there is nothing to point to it as such. The major cheese area has a whole vegan section (again I never saw it before this week) only the sign advertising it is a completely different colour and even though I was looking for it I couldn't see it and had to ask when it was right in front of me. The ony options in there were Daiya, one cashew based option and another company with slices.

Then they have a section that has tofu, lots of fake meats etc. Then there is the Natural Foods section which is where I normally shop and where all the organic foods are and lots of vegan ones too. Of course the Beyond Meat items are over in the meat section, another place I don't go and just going to look at them there made me feel a bit nauseous.

I am thinking of contacting the head office and asking if I can make up some kind of a vegan guide for their stores. They are a huge multiglomerate with 2300 stores in Canada.

Emma JC

What they really need to do right now is provide redundancy. They can have a section for plant based foods, and they can put some in the respective places where people might be inclined to choose the alternative.

 

[Lou]

I have been having discussions in my local grocery store with the clerks (not with management so it isn't going anywhere) about their habit of spreading specific vegan/vegetarian products all over the store instead of keeping them in one location so that we know they are there.

Yeah, that is grocery store's for you.
I've decided to be optimistic (for a change) and see this as a good sign. Yea! we are moving forward.

Yes, there is a certain convenience of putting the "vegan food" all in one place. The big west coast Supermarket chain, Safeway, tends to do that. they have a refrigerated endcap near the produce with tofu and fake cheeses and fake cold cuts. Maybe some hotdogs, too. Most of the rest of the stuff is in the freezer aisle. My little grocery store has the same kind of thing but smaller between the eggs and the milk. However, the fake eggs is next to the eggs and the fake cream cheese is next to the cream cheese. (oh, I think Safeway also does this).

So one way of looking at it is that the fake eggs and fake cream cheeses have become mainstream. And that is good. Putting beyond meat with the real meats may be a sign of the same thing but it also may have to do with packaging. I read in a blurb something from another new alt meat company that they went with a type of packaging that required it to be in the frozen food section. the type of packaging that was required for the chilled section was not environmentally friendly, i.e. more plastic, more waste. So they just went frozen only.

"vegan foods" getting mainstreamed is probably good for everybody but the traditional food companies. Although someone might buy one by accident and end up liking it, its maybe even more likely that someone shopping for cream cheese might see the Miyoko's kitchen cream cheese and decide to give it a try.

But yeah, the same thing happened to me. I was looking for some fake cream cheese and it wasn't with the other fake cheeses. it was with the cream cheese.

And I really should start using a better word than "fake".

 

[rogerjolly]

And I really should start using a better word than "fake".

Yeah. Be posh. Use “faux”.

According to Merriam-Webster faux is not just fake but a very chic fake: “Faux marble, for example, is found in the best of homes.”

Roger.

 

[Lou]

I don't think faux marble is found in the best of homes. That would be real marble.

I have seen "Faux" used with leather or fur. I think its meant to be trendy or chic.

Oh, Plant-Based would be a good term or phrase. but its a lot more letters and a hyphen. Maybe "veggie" or "Vegan"?

 

[Emma JC]

What they really need to do right now is provide redundancy. They can have a section for plant based foods, and they can put some in the respective places where people might be inclined to choose the alternative.

I agree with this wholeheartedly - I was able to get the cashew dips on sale because they were nearing expiry date as the vegans don't know about them. Both places is definitely the answer as I agree with @Lou too that having them spread around the store makes non-vegans think about them as an option, especially for their non-vegan friends.

As I have written before there are tons and tons of "vegan food" that is not labelled as such:

• all produce aisles - fresh fruits and vegetables and herbs
• frozen aisles - frozen fruits, vegetables
• bean aisles - canned beans, dried beans, breakfast beans
• canned fruits and vegetables
• pasta aisle - most pastas and sauces, noodles
• condiments aisle - vinegars, olives, pickles, ketchup, soy sauce, hot sauces, mustard, tahini
• snack and bulk aisle - nuts, dried fruits, nutritional yeast, various grains, some potato chips
• cereal aisle - oatmeal, Spoon Size Shredded Wheat, Shredded Wheat etc
• beverage aisle - sparkling water, herbal teas, coffee
• bakery aisle - sprouted breads, pitas, tortillas

:so it does make sense to have more and more "vegan" food mixed in.

Emma JC

 

[Forest Nymph]

In the early Medieval period the word meat just meant whatever you had as a meal, things you ate rather than just drinking.

Also mince meat pie in some capacities is just fruits and nuts and spices, no animal flesh (though I do think there's a version with bone broth that's still not chunks of flesh).

My grandparents called the liquid inside a coconut as milk, not water or juice.

I think, on some level these people must realize it's objectively weird to rape animals to treat them like machines and they don't want people thinking too hard about how strange and perverted it is...even Native Americans who hunted or fished found animal agriculture strange and sadistic. I read this article in an environmental law class from the 1930s, where a tribal leader talks about an animals right to live a free and natural life before death. A more recent article I read describes the mythology of native people being simple savages who only hunted and gathered, while in California at least they tended wild plants like a garden, aside from doing controlled burns, their methods of land management were highly sophisticated in relation to local ecosystem health and the animals who live there. This article uses terms like land rights as well as animal rights, which is pretty profound. They mean the rights of the land, not to the land.

So yeah these commercial ag businesses must realize on some level it's bizarre and unnatural which deepens their attachment to culturally familiar, safe or "normal" words.

Or maybe they don't. But I was reading a Guardian article about humane cows milk the other day and it gave me the creeps. The dairy farmers calling it "their milk" really brought home how rapey and sadistic it is, as a mindset, to raise animals for commercial purposes. Maybe not the Hindus and their family cow that they raise naturally with nursing calves, but any commercial dairy.