What Is It?
The Beyond Burger is an all-plant, gluten-free patty with protein from peas, mung beans, and rice, plus beet and pomegranate to provide meatlike redness.
It gets its fat from canola oil, coconut oil, and cocoa butter; those last two ingredients also give the product its marbled look, the company says. Further, the burger, made by Beyond Meat, has no genetically modified organisms. The company also makes other plant-based “meats,” such as a sausage and "crumbles" (think ground beef).
Is It Healthier Than Beef?
Not necessarily. It does have zero dietary cholesterol—though that has less effect on the cholesterol levels in your blood than does saturated fat. And on that more important measure, as well as for total fat and calories, a Beyond Burger and a typical 80 percent lean beef burger are similar.
The Beyond Burger has much more sodium, too. Plus, "while its starting materials may be plants, the main ingredients are all highly processed concentrates, oils, and flavors," says Amy Keating, R.D., a CR nutritionist and taste tester. Research links such foods to obesity and heart disease. "If you want the health benefits of plants, eat them as whole foods with their nutrients and fiber naturally present."