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07/26/2018

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Matthew Derengowski

This article was very informative on the positive sides of eating Vegetarian meat. The article talks about fake meats that can be enjoyed by someone who likes meats and a vegetarian. I would say I agree with the statement and the message that it has. The point that was brought up and that I hear asked very frequent is "First, the lack of understanding of the protein needs of vegetarians, who in fact can’t “just eat vegetables,”" This is constantly something i hear and people never really know about sources of protein like these fake meats. I feel like to prove why the fake meat is better you should have gathered more facts about the fake meats affect versus real meat. I understand it was catered towards people who are celebrating the 4th of July but it would be nice to know what other fake meats there are besides hot dogs and burgers. Over all it was good and made me think a lot more about eating fake meat.

Kellie Evans

While I support the idea of Emily Dreyfuss' article on supporting the consumers of imitation meat, she does not backup her stance with much evidence at all. A lot of the details seem to be missing. Like why does she even care about this topic, since she expresses her avid love for meat? She affirms right in her introduction that one of the reasons the 4th of July is her favorite holiday is because "it's built for eating meat." And then goes on to state that hot dogs are her favorite food. There are many reasons why a vegetarian diet is beneficial, and she could've used some of the stronger reasons to persuade her audience to be more accepting of such individuals. I'm sure the vegetarian community appreciates the support of a meat-eater since they catch a ton of backlash for their dieting choices, but it has to leave them with some questions as well.

Patrick Huegel

In this article i found it to be very informative and educational on the topic of fake meats. It was very helpful in learning how to understand the normality of fake meat. It starts of first by saying how absurd it is not knowing or having full knowledge of the product, "No. No. Nope. There is so much wrong with that statement. First, the lack of understanding of the protein needs of vegetarians, who in fact can’t “just eat vegetables,” actually"(Dreyfuss). It continues to go on and explain why the protein benefits are the same as none meat. "But meat isn’t necessary for survival, and not everyone shares the love. With the advent of agriculture, meat-light and vegetable-based diets sprang up around the world"(Dreyfuss). I personally found this article to be great and informative and has changed my view on fake meats. I might even go out and try one this weekend.

Yegsik Amirkhanyan

The article like many states the various aspects of hot dog meat specifically and how despite its inorganic and unreal ingredients Americans find it to be the most standardized and enjoyable meal on any occasion. However, when reading her article it does become quite confusing as to why she would put together this piece of work debating both for and against meat when she clearly states her love for it. Other aspects such as factual evidence should have been included in her copy demonstrating how fake meat is created, its health risks, and on one side of the debate, why it is not good for you. On the other point, it should also include facts about the case. Her being a former meat-lover it may come to both a surprise and help that she is sticking up for vegetarianism and will benefit the readers and the vegetarians reading.

yunhuwang

Supertex protein is a kind of vegetable protein product with muscle fiber texture which is processed by mixing, organizing and drying with plant protein as the main raw material. The protein content is 50-90%. Because Supertex protein will be fluffy after rehydration, it is like semi-cooked lean pork, so some people call it "drawing protein", "plant protein meat", "simulated meat" and so on. Foods that completely or partially replace lean pork or beef with Supertex protein have almost no difference in taste compared with ordinary meat products and Supertex protein has the high protein content, low-fat content and no cholesterol. Supertex protein is more cost-effective than lean pork and beef, so Supertex protein is widely accepted by meat and vegetarian manufacturers.

Shantel Earle

Although I may agree with Emily Dreyfuss and the decision of fake meat, it seems as though there is key information missing from the article. Dreyfuss discusses the hardship and the misunderstandings of the use of the Vegan hot dog,specifically on fourth of July, but does not include any statistics in support of her position. It has become common today to dismiss the idea of vegan hot dog or "fake meat" in general, because of the common idea that it is unnatural to eat "meat" that does not come from something that produces meat. On the other hand, people can easily obtain nutrients even if they are vegan or vegetarian. I feel as though my only main concern is with the use of "fake meat" is how much healthier it is compared to its counterpart?

TARIQ Charlie Brown JONES

I agree that vegans are being misunderstood. I feel that the grill needs something vegetarian, and I feel that vegetarians are not getting the respect they deserved. However, like Emily Dreyfuss stated, that you can't just eat vegetables, you have to eat protein also. People understand that vegetables lower your risk of types of cancer, but I argue that protein helps you build muscle. So taken into consideration, most vegans needs attention too if they're going out for a BBQ cookout.

carlee sichel

The writer, Emily Dreyfuss makes a great point when she argues that vegans want a place at the barbeque too where they can enjoy their food. Humans don't need meat, we need protein to survive and this article shows that there are alternatives to meat that people can enjoy with others. I think if you can find an alternative to eating meat that doesn't cause suffering to an animal, why wouldn't you do that?

Bernadette Minni

Dreyfuss’s did not go the traditional route when arguing the need for alternative meat products. She didn’t preach about nutrition or ethics. What she did was give us is an argument for inclusion, everyone needs protein and vegetarian meat products actually do taste good. My interest was sparked by the mention of the Fourth of July and all the foods that are normally served along with this holiday. More recently, vegetarian food consumption has been on the rise, however, there are plenty of people who do not give these people or products the deference they deserve. Emily suggests that it is natural for a vegetarian to want to eat easily identifiable foods that her friends and family eat; vegans should not have to feel ashamed for eating vegan hot dogs and veggie burgers. I agree with the Dreyfuss because of my twenty years of food service experience and now selling restaurants food, confirms it. Plant based proteins are on the rise as evidenced by the addition of vegetarian options on most menus, pizza crust and rice being made with cauliflower, and the American palates favorites: hot dogs and hamburgers being served with vegetarian ingredients.
As for Ms. Dreyfuss’s sources it’s difficult to say they are one-hundred percent reliable since the sources were not cited at the bottom of her article and Gary Beauchamp’s credentials had to be added after the article was written. Further, she mentions Catesby Holmes the writer being a vegetarian her whole life and briefly mentions how she was treated by her grandmother but I do not know who Catesby Holmes is. Likewise, she references Greg Sams as the creator of the vegetable burger and my experience tells me this is correct but without citations, I can see how someone may want to argue that point.
Overall this was a very thoughtful article and I do believe people should give other people’s preferences some reverence. If we are striving to work with emotional intelligence, why would we want to make fun of vegetarians eating items that look like meat? Wouldn’t it be better to try their products and a variety of them, so that we may learn to expand the world we are living in? You may even like some of their products, I know I do, and so do many people who identify as “flexitarians.” This may be a new term for some people but according to Merriam-Webster, flexitarians are vegetarians who sometimes eat meat or fish. Having a variety of plant based proteins is especially important to the millennial generation who dine out often. Therefore, the next time you invite your vegetarian friend to your barbeque and they show up with veggie burgers and dogs, give it shot, you may find a new food you enjoy.

“Flexitarians.” Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster, www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flexitarians.

Bernadette Minni
September 30, 2018

Patty R.

“In Defense of the Vegan Hot Dog” reads no more to me than a written rant by someone who was severely dissatisfied that veggie dogs were absent at last years barbeque. Dreyfuss’ biggest objection is not that people avoid eating these vegan hot dogs, but the overall lack of acceptance of fake meat as an option for consumption. Perhaps taking it a bit too personally, Dreyfuss’ reaction to the character on Queer Eye seems a bit over the top For one, it’s a television program, produced to stimulate thought, conversation, and, dare I say, some drama. People are always going to have their own preferences and fake meat just may not be among those preferences. Dreyfuss argues that meat-eaters should give fake meat a chance, but then continues on to describe how the fake meat neither looks nor tastes like the real thing. Perhaps people have tried the fake meat and just really did not enjoy it. To each his own, I say.

Dreyfuss goes on to discuss how eating meat can lead to “an increased risk of everything from high blood pressure to cancer”. Although I agree that eating certain red or significantly fatty meats over a long period of time can definitely contribute to developing these health problems, there are still other protein options available. Dreyfuss fails to remember chicken, eggs, or fish as alternatives to fatty, red meat. Fish, especially salmon, contains important vitamins and nutrients that we may be unable to obtain from any other proteins, especially vegetable based proteins. Although these vegetable based proteins are a useful option, they will still not provide certain nutrients that are needed by the human body. On the flipside to Dreyfuss’ argument, I wonder if a diet consisting of only vegetable based proteins can in itself be detrimental to a person’s nutrition.

Later in the article, Dreyfuss tries to defend her point on taste and preference by using three children as test subjects. Serving them three vegetarian dogs and two meat dogs, she believes that observing the preference of the children will give some indication that there is difficulty differentiating between the dogs, furthering her argument that all the hot dogs basically taste the same. On one hand, Dreyfuss does a good job by providing a variety of both hot dog options. However, where Dreyfuss fails is that she did not serve all the hot dogs in the same way to each child, even covering the one hot dog in “all the ketchup, all of it”. Despite this being a very informal experiment, how does Dreyfuss expect to achieve any consistency with her results if the test subjects were not given consistent variables to begin with? Oh, and then there is the fact that her test subject are children. Children I know, although stubborn at times, seem to eat just about anything if they are in the mood. Performing this experiment with adults would have given her much more accurate results, but also probably would not have supported her point.

Haley Cook

I found this article to be surprisingly informative and not really what I thought it would be about. I was expecting it to perhaps be about health or environmental benefits of vegetarianism and why so many like fake-meat products as a real meat alternative. It gave a different perspective on why vegetarians would want to eat meat substitutes, not because as commonly believed that it would taste like meat but because it takes the form of meat products so that at commonly meat-centered events such as the fourth of july, vegetarians can feel connected to the rest of the meat-eating group.

Rylie

As a vegetarian, I completely agree with Dreyfuss. Unless I specifically mention my dietary restrictions, after attending summer barbecues or even regular get togethers, I'm left hungry, and dissatisfied at the lack of vegetarian options. I think vegan and vegetarian "meats" should be more widely available, as Dreyfuss puts it, "on the grill". Since becoming vegetarian, I've gotten friends and family members hooked on non meat alternatives, and I think almost everyone who eats meat would agree that having faux meat products more widely available doesn't do any harm.

Daniel

I found the article to be quite informative. I had expected it to be a rant from an upset vegetarian who has a vendetta against people that eat meat. Instead the position of vegan based meat substitutes is brought to the forefront. Many people do have a bias against plant based meat substitutes and will never try it. They wouldn't try it as it is perceived as an inferior food. I would try vegetarian meat after reading the article. However, I disagree with the authors choice on not feeding her child real meat. It seems like she doesn't even humor the idea of letting him choose between and the idea is construed as experimenting on a child. Children should be able to consume real meat. Can we really say at this point that meat does not have nutritional benefits if eaten in certain amounts? Is there sufficient research to back this up?

Jake C.

This article was quite interesting and gave a deep insight into the ideas and motives behind consuming fake meat. Before delving into this article I assumed it was just going to enter a discussion about its ethics and health benefits. However, I was pleasantly surprised and interested to see that it talked about a much more important and overlooked part of vegetarianism, inclusion. I never understood why people look down on vegetarians, because of how some are forced to become one due to health concerns or for other important and personal reasons. Including vegetarians is quite important as including anybody else. They should be able to eat whatever they want and not be shamed for it. Sometimes vegetarians just want to enjoy a protein-rich snack and it should be understandable that they would select an alternative that suits their diet. Unfortunately the stigma surrounding vegetarian meat persists but articles like these help educate people on a different perspective that they aren't used to seeing.

Simran K.

In this article, Emily Dreyfuss discusses her view on vegan based meat substitute that those who want or do consume it should be treated with respect while being a carnivore herself. I actually do agree with Dreyfuss because there are alot of people who are vegetarians or vegans who just want to consume this imitation of meat for their own personal reasons. Dreyfuss states “...the lack of understanding of the protein needs of vegetarians, who in fact can’t “just eat vegetables,” actually.” This statement she made really does make sense since you can’t simply live without protein in your diet. So, for those who don’t eat meat can really find their protein intake from fake meat which is why I would like it to be available for those people. Just like Dreyfuss discussed, there are some people who have to cut out meat from their diet for medical reasons and if they want to consume fake meat since its similar to real meat, they shouldn’t be judged. Overall, I found this article to be very informative and I hope it spreads awareness to others about vegan meat, so that people who consume it don’t have to be bashed for it, instead be respected for their decision.

Perhaps a little blunt

As a vegetarian, I must insist that we stop calling it meat. It is subsistence, if you don't like it being soybeans, that is. I personally am extremely embarrassed to order a "burger" at a restaurant as their vegetable option. It seems to me that it would be better to have a nonedescript cube of vegetable protein than to pretend that I'm eating "meat" or a "burger." It goes against my conviction not to eat meat in the first place. It's almost as if I was representing jealousy of people who eat meat, when it fact I see what they're doing as morally wrong or at least societally inefficient, not as a privilege I want to pretend I have.

Emily Clugston

Emily Dreyfuss discusses her take on imitation meat for vegans and vegetarians. I agree with her view on this because food for vegans/vegetarians have not had a lot of options for food. I also feel it also gives an option for people who wouldn't want to eat meat as often for their own personal reasons. Although, I disagree with Dreyfuss' decision to feed her children the imitation meat for an experiment because I feel it was ethically wrong from personal experience and I also feel that there could've been a hidden allergy to soy. Overall I felt the article was informative for people who are interested in being vegetarian/vegan or people who just want to eat healthier.

Emily Clugston

Emily Dreyfuss discusses her take on imitation meat for vegans and vegetarians. I agree with her view on this because food for vegans/vegetarians have not had a lot of options for food. I also feel it also gives an option for people who wouldn't want to eat meat as often for their own personal reasons. I also agree with her choice to give her children the imitation meat because it keeps their mind open to enjoy other foods. Overall I felt the article was informative for people who are interested in being vegetarian/vegan or people who just want to eat healthier.

Cynthia  Liu

In the article "In Defense of the Vegan Hot Dog" by Emily Dreyfuss, she discusses the topic of imitation meats, and its vital role for those who consume it for health reasons, or as a choice. Dreyfuss elaborates her argument by providing example of those that attack imitation meats, and continues by refuting them. Drey argues that imitation meat are just as equally nutritious, and act as a filler for those who do not consume meat. I absolutely agree with Dreyfuss’s view of imitation meat. Many people choose not to eat meat for personal reasons, which is completely respectable. Some may not eat meat due to health reasons, and personal views such as cruelty against animals. Whatever the reasons are, attacking those who choose to eat imitation meat is unfair. Imitation meat is simply an alternative that respect their views. Moreover, people that suffer from health issues are offered with a more healthy option that suits their needs. Especially for those that suffer from health issues such as high blood pressure. In addition, many people argue that if people choose not eat meat, imitation meat is counter intuitive. Meat is highly favored by most, but imitation meat is just as equally delicious to consume. Most people have a reason as why they choose not to eat meat, but that does not mean they do not enjoy the taste. The reason meat is also consumed is because it contains a great source of protein. Similar to what Dreyfuss states in the article that people who do not consume meat still need a source of protein. Food is something humans rely on to feed their bodies, and replenish their energy. Everyone has the right to consume what they desire, and enjoy food to the fullest extent. Hence, imitations meats are a strong option that acts as a great substitution.

hi

fuck you larry

Brenda Jacobs

In this article about "Defense of vegan hot dogs" they say the vegan hot dogs are linked to increase high blood pressure and cancer. I say that vegan hot dogs should not have all those chemical in it. They say the hot dogs are strange colored meat resembling things that would would throw on the grill. I say the vegan hot dogs should look, taste and smell like a hot dog.

Emma

In this article, https://www.wired.com/story/in-defense-of-the-vegan-hot-dog/ Emily Dreyfuss writes about the choice of consuming imitation meat as well as real meat. Dreyfuss focuses on the health risks associated with eating real meat. She also focuses on the benefits of imitation meat. She takes both sides of the argument. She talks about feeding her child imitation meat and a behavioral biologist though that it was like she was tricking her son into eating healthy and not because he enjoyed the imitation meat. When she talks about the experiment she did with younger children, she gave them a few options and they chose on their own which one they liked more. I think that the behavioral biologist shouldn't have inserted his opinion and minded his own business. It shouldn't concern anyone else how a parent parents their child.

Connor B

I like that this article brings in both sides of the argument, those who who don't eat meat and those who do. I personally disagree with the idea of naming many vegetarian/vegan meal after meals that have meat in them like the vegan burger and vegan hot dog that was mentioned in the article. Not everyone has the same taste and not everyone will enjoy the "fake meat". Some may like it, some may completely dislike it, and some may be indecisive of the vegetarian/vegan versions of meat filled meals. These new "fake meat" food on the other hand does provide a someone who does not eat meat an option to eat like everyone else who does eat meat and to not feel like an outcast at the dining table, but giving these foods the same names as meat filled foods with vegetarian or vegan in front of it just makes it seem more like an outcasted food option.

Ariel Edwards

In this article, Emily Dreyfuss makes the point that “Vegetarians just want to be understood. They also want to be able to eat snack foods and fried foods once in a while like everyone else.” Dreyfuss favorite food to eat is a hot dog but she has discovered that imitation meat can satisfy the taste buds just like a real piece of pork. I have personally tried different kinds of imitation meats and I find this statement to be true. Things like veggie burgers, etc. are a great way for vegetarians to still enjoy a “meaty” dinner but reap all the health benefits.

Jeremy Wingard

I am transported to a hot summer day around the grill cooking lots of good meats as I started to read Emily Dreyfuss's essay she is a credible person in this argument as I believe she loves meat just as much as I do, and I really love meat! I really got the feel of how isolating it must be for someone at a big cookout, which is the whole reason for everyone coming together, and not to have anything to throw on the grill. I love her use of statistics and her small experiment using real and fake meats in a blind taste test to see which one her children would like more. Hey, "from the mouths of babes" right? I personally am convinced that there should be a way to get hot stuff off the grill even if you're a vegetarian. I love it and I can't wait to eat a tofu Burger.

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