{"id":16639,"date":"2020-12-18T09:00:21","date_gmt":"2020-12-18T14:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/?p=16639"},"modified":"2020-12-02T12:55:28","modified_gmt":"2020-12-02T17:55:28","slug":"vg-classic-beyond-meat-burger-at-veggie-grill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/2020\/12\/18\/vg-classic-beyond-meat-burger-at-veggie-grill\/","title":{"rendered":"VG Classic\u00ae: Beyond Meat\u00ae Burger at Veggie Grill\u00ae"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"265\" src=\"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/CvtWYXCVIAAI_LF-300x265.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-16640\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/CvtWYXCVIAAI_LF-300x265.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/CvtWYXCVIAAI_LF-768x677.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/CvtWYXCVIAAI_LF-1024x903.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/CvtWYXCVIAAI_LF.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>By Jeanne\nYacoubou, MS<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In April 2020\nThe Vegetarian Resource Group was working on an article comparing nutrition of\nthe new meat-like veggie burgers. See: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/journal\/vj2020issue3\/2020_issue3_newer_meat.php\">https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/journal\/vj2020issue3\/2020_issue3_newer_meat.php<\/a>\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We noticed\nthat the <em>VG Classic<\/em> menu item featuring a Beyond Burger<strong><sup>\u00ae<\/sup><\/strong>\nat Veggie Grill had different nutritional values <em>for the patty alone<\/em>\nthan those posted on the Beyond Meat (BM) website for the Beyond Burger patty. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Veggie Grill\n(VG) is a fast-casual vegan restaurant chain currently in New York,\nMassachusetts, Illinois, California, Oregon, and Washington that has been\nenjoyed by VRG staff and volunteers. See <a href=\"https:\/\/www.veggiegrill.com\/\">https:\/\/www.veggiegrill.com\/<\/a>\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Using Veggie\nGrill&#8217;s online nutrition calculator, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.veggiegrill.com\/nutrition-calculator.html\">https:\/\/www.veggiegrill.com\/nutrition-calculator.html<\/a>\nand eliminating all condiments, the Beyond Meat <em>Beyond Burger<sup>\u00ae<\/sup><\/em>\npatty in their VG Classic menu option received the following nutritionals:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Calories: 300<\/li><li>Sodium: 650 mg<\/li><li>Saturated Fat: 8 g <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>By\ncomparison, the nutrition facts label for the Beyond Burger, on the Beyond Meat\nwebsite <a href=\"https:\/\/shop.beyondmeat.com\/products\/trialpack\">https:\/\/shop.beyondmeat.com\/products\/trialpack<\/a>\nlisted: <\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Calories: 260<\/li><li>Sodium: 350 mg<\/li><li>Saturated Fat: 5 g <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>[<strong>VRG note:<\/strong>\nTo see the nutrition facts for the patty itself on the Beyond Meat website,\nclick on the leftmost label (there are four) below the large photo of the trial\npack from the link above.]&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The VRG\nnoticed that the Veggie Grill website calculator did not list a patty weight.\nBeyond Meat&#8217;s website label stated it was <strong>4 oz.<\/strong> Thinking that a\ndifference in serving size weight, cooking method, different ingredients \u2013 <em>or\nsome combination<\/em> \u2013 created the discrepancies, we contacted both Beyond Meat\nand Veggie Grill for more information. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Initial\nResponse from Beyond Meat Customer Service<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Customer\nCare Team at Beyond Meat, quickly replied in May 2020 by saying:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201c&#8230;when our\nproducts are in restaurants, the restaurant does have the liberty to cook and\nserve our products as they wish \u2013 this is the same for U.S. and international\nrestaurants. Therefore the nutritional information for our retail burger and\nthe one at Veggie Grill may be slightly different depending on size. We hope\nthis clears things up!\u201d&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Beyond Meat also\ntold us, \u201cOur nutrition information is for our products uncooked, we don&#8217;t have\ninformation to offer for after cooked.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Response from\nVeggie Grill Customer Service<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We received a\nreply to our inquiry using the Veggie Grill website contact request form. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201c&#8230;We have\nfollowed up with our culinary team and confirmed that we receive a proprietary\npatty that is different than what can be purchased at the store. This would\nexplain why the nutritional information is different than what is listed on\ntheir website.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The VRG\nfollowed up by asking about whether the patty nutritional values were for a\ncooked or uncooked patty. We also wanted to know how much it weighed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Veggie Grill\nresponded that \u201cA representative from Beyond Meat will contact you shortly to\nanswer all of your questions regarding the <em>Beyond<\/em> patties we use at our\nlocations. We believe this will be the best solution as they will have all of\nthe answers for you as the patty that we use is not the exact same as what can\nbe purchased in a store.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Later\nResponses from BM<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We received\nan email from Beyond Meat and learned:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>There is a retail Beyond\nMeat patty and a food service (FS) patty.<\/li><li>Veggie Grill receives\na foodservice patty from Beyond Meat.<\/li><li>Consumers purchase\nretail Beyond Meat patties in the store.<\/li><li>There is less fat in\nthe retail product than in the foodservice patty.<\/li><li>The added fat (in\nthis case, coconut oil) is there to prevent the patty from drying out until\nit&#8217;s served to a restaurant guest. <\/li><li>Both the retail patty\nand the foodservice patty have the same proteins (that is, pea proteins and\nbrown rice) but in different amounts.<\/li><li>Veggie Grill receives\na 4 oz. patty.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Beyond Meat then sent us specification sheets for the retail and foodservice burgers. Specification sheets, also known as spec sheets, give information \u2013 including nutritional data \u2013 about products. They are intended for wholesale customers, although general consumers can request to see them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here is the relevant information from the spec sheets:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<table class=\"wp-block-table\"><tbody><tr><td>   <strong>Retail BM patty (4 oz.)<\/strong>   <\/td><td>   <strong>Food Service BM patty (4 oz.)<\/strong>   <\/td><\/tr><tr><td>   Calories: 260   <\/td><td>\n  Calories: 280\n  <\/td><\/tr><tr><td>   Sodium: 350 mg   <\/td><td>   Sodium: 390 mg   <\/td><\/tr><tr><td>   Satd. Fat: 5 g (Total fat: 18 g)   <\/td><td>   Satd. Fat: 6 g (Total fat: 20 g)   <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>\n\n\n\n<p>Here is the\ningredient statement for the food service patty:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Water, Pea\nProtein Isolate, Expeller-Pressed Canola Oil, Refined Coconut Oil, Rice Protein,\nNatural Flavors, Mung Bean Protein, Methylcellulose, Potato Starch, Apple\nExtract, Salt, Potassium Chloride, Vinegar, Lemon Juice Concentrate, Sunflower\nLecithin, Beet Juice Extract (for color), Pomegranate Fruit Powder, Lycopene\nColor (from Tomato).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here is the\ningredient statement for the retail patty:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWater, Pea\nProtein, Expeller-Pressed Canola Oil, Refined Coconut Oil, Rice Protein,\nNatural Flavors, Cocoa Butter, Mung Bean Protein, Methylcellulose, Potato\nStarch, Apple Extract, Pomegranate Extract, Salt, Potassium Chloride, Vinegar,\nLemon Juice Concentrate, Sunflower Lecithin, Beet Juice Extract (for color).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The VRG notes\nthat cocoa butter, <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/figure\/Fatty-acid-and-triglycerides-profile-of-genuine-cocoa-butter_tbl1_308523494\">https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/figure\/Fatty-acid-and-triglycerides-profile-of-genuine-cocoa-butter_tbl1_308523494<\/a> a source of\nfat that contains more saturated components than unsaturated, is added to the\nretail patty but <strong>not<\/strong> the foodservice patty. (There is only 5 g of\nsaturated fat in the retail patty (total fat: 18 g) versus 6 g (total fat: 20\ng) in the foodservice patty.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On all food\nlabels, ingredients are listed in order of predominance in the product. See<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fda.gov\/food\/food-ingredients-packaging\/overview-food-ingredients-additives-colors#qalabel\">https:\/\/www.fda.gov\/food\/food-ingredients-packaging\/overview-food-ingredients-additives-colors#qalabel<\/a> Relative percentages vary and are proprietary. So, it is\nlikely that there is comparatively more coconut oil (fourth ingredient listed\non both statements) in the foodservice than in the retail version.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nspecification sheets created more questions, since the values from Veggie\nGrill&#8217;s online calculator (shown above) were different from <em>both<\/em> of the\nspec sheets. These are responses from Veggie Grill to additional questions we\nasked. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>\u201cWe do not\nadd any oil to the flat top when cooking the burgers because the burgers\ncontain enough fat in them.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Depending on\nwhat style we are doing, sometimes seasonings are added (those are included in\nthe nutritionals we post). All of our burgers have sauces, garnishes, breads,\netc. &nbsp;added. Any ingredient we use on our\nburgers is included in the nutritionals. It will never be JUST the patty\nnutritionals.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The last\nreply <em>implies<\/em> that something else beside the patty is included in the\nstated nutritional values given above for the Veggie Grill patty since they are\ngreater than those of the foodservice patty. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In reply to\nour additional questions, Beyond Meat said, \u201cAlso, the reason you are seeing a\ndiscrepancy in spec sheet info is most likely due to the fact we are constantly\ninnovating and improving our products so our spec sheets are constantly\nchanging.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>September\nFollow-up from Veggie Grill<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here is\nadditional information we learned from our phone conversation with Veggie Grill:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The patty Veggie\nGrill uses from Beyond Meat is \u201csmaller in terms of ounces\u201d than the retail BM\nburger.<\/li><li>No salt is added to\nthe burger.<\/li><li>The burger isn&#8217;t grilled\nin oil.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201c&#8230;Some of the confusion may be in that we are in the\nprocess of doing a 90% overhaul to our menu and so over the past few months,\nour burger skus have changed slightly as we\u2019ve perfected the menu items. [VRG\nNote: <em>SKU<\/em>, or stock-keeping unit, is a unique identifier for an item sold by a business. Businesses\ncreate their own codes based on various characteristics of their merchandise. This allows\nvendors to track inventory. Each business has its own definitions of skus for\ninternal use, unlike other identifiers of a product, which are the same for all\nbusinesses. A Beyond Burger at one chain would have a different SKU than at another\nrestaurant chain.]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also within that time, Beyond Burger switched their\nformula. So the actual nutritionals have changed a few times, although we try\nto keep up with those changes in all portals as they happen&#8230;We are extremely\ncommitted to and conscious of the need for transparency in our nutritional\ninformation. Our menu items change frequently, and the vendors we use also make\nchanges. It is common for nutritionals to change on menu items even though the\noverall item may not appear to change for the guest.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>VRG had observed on Beyond Meat\u2019s foodservice spec sheet\nand a NFP (nutrition facts profile) sent to us stating that it was \u201cthe\nnutritional statement from Beyond Meat.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here is that NFP (nutrition facts profile):<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"286\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/nutrition-facts-286x300.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-16641\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/nutrition-facts-286x300.png 286w, https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/nutrition-facts.png 501w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 286px) 100vw, 286px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Upon seeing the 3.7 oz serving size, The VRG learned that\nBeyond Meat has several different formulas. Their standard is 4 oz., but Veggie\nGrill uses a 3.7 wt oz. patty. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It was at this time, when we checked the Veggie Grill website,\nthat the Nutrition Facts Profile for the Beyond Meat patty alone on the Veggie\nGrill nutrition calculator no longer showed the April 2020 values (shown\nabove). Now the values were:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Calories: 260<\/li><li>Sodium: 370 mg<\/li><li>Saturated Fat: 6 g <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>These were\nthe same values shown on the Nutrition Facts Profile (above) and attributed as\ncoming from Beyond Meat.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The VRG performed a proportional analysis of Beyond Meat&#8217;s\nand Veggie Grill\u2019s values using the numbers listed on the Beyond Meat spec\nsheet (sent to us by Beyond Meat) for the food service patty and those now\nappearing on Veggie Grill&#8217;s calculator, taking into account weight differences:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>BM Food\nService Patty :: VG Patty<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Calories:<\/strong> 4 oz.\/3.7\noz. :: 280\/260 = 1.081\/1.077 (approx. = 1)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Satd. Fat: <\/strong>4\/3.7 :: 6\ng\/6 g = 1.081\/1 = 1.081<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Sodium: <\/strong>4\/3.7 ::\n390\/370 = 1.081\/1.054 = 1.026 (approx. = 1)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Assuming\nthere may be slight discrepancies due to rounding, the proportional analysis\nindicates that website differences are due \u2013 at least in part \u2013 to the patty\nsize difference (4 oz. vs. 3.7 oz.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Veggie Grill\nconfirmed it does not grill the patty in any oil. Therefore, the difference in\ncalories between the Veggie Grill and Beyond Meat websites is not due to\ncooking. Veggie Grill also confirmed no sodium was added before serving,\nduring, or after cooking. If so, sodium would be included in the nutritionals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>General\nConclusions on Veggie Grill&#8217;s <em>VG Classic<\/em> made with Beyond Meat&#8217;s <em>Beyond\nBurger<\/em><\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Based on\ninformation from Beyond Meat and Veggie Grill, we know that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The nutritional\nvalues for the uncooked retail burger appear on the Beyond Meat site. <\/li><li>The <em>VG Classic<\/em>\nburger values are based on a cooked patty made by Beyond Meat for food service\n(that is, restaurants, hospitals, schools, etc.) <\/li><li>The Beyond Meat\npatties (food service and retail) are listed on their respective specification\nsheets as <strong>4 oz.<\/strong> each uncooked. Beyond Meat told us this on several\noccasions, too.<\/li><li>Veggie Grill reports\nthat the patty sold to them by Beyond Meat is listed as being <strong>3.7 oz.<\/strong> <\/li><li>A proportional\nanalysis of the nutritional values confirms, notwithstanding minor rounding\ndiscrepancies, that the 0.3 oz. weight difference (4.0 oz. &#8211; 3.7 oz.) accounts\nfor differences in calories and sodium between the two patties. <\/li><li>No differences in\nsaturated fat amounts were observed. Beyond Meat told us that the foodservice\npatty has \u201cadded fat\u201d \u2013 more than the retail burger <em>ounce for ounce<\/em>.\n(See chart above.) Since the Veggie Grill food service patty is smaller, (3.7\noz.), its saturated fat content should be slightly <em>less than<\/em> the\nsaturated fat content in a 4 oz. food service Beyond Meat burger \u2013 <em>according\nto proportional analysis.<\/em> A possible explanation for this apparent anomaly\nmay be due to rounding. <\/li><li>Veggie Grill states\nthat the nutritional values for the Beyond Meat patty used in their <em>VG\nClassic<\/em>, currently appearing on their online calculator, are the identical\nvalues reported to them by Beyond Meat.&nbsp; <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Thank you to Beyond Meat and Veggie Grill for all your\nassistance in answering these questions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The contents of this\nposting, our website, and our other publications, including Vegetarian Journal,\nare not intended to provide personal medical advice. Medical advice should be\nobtained from a qualified health professional. We often depend on product and\ningredient information from company statements. It is impossible to be 100%\nsure about a statement, info can change, people have different views, and\nmistakes can be made. Please use your best judgment about whether a product is\nsuitable for you. To be sure, do further research or confirmation on your own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For information about other vegetarian and vegan restaurants, see <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/restaurant\/index.php\">https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/restaurant\/index.php<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For information about restaurant chains, see <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/fastfoodinfo.php\">https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/fastfoodinfo.php<\/a>\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Jeanne Yacoubou, MS In April 2020 The Vegetarian Resource Group was working on an article comparing nutrition of the new meat-like veggie burgers. See: https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/journal\/vj2020issue3\/2020_issue3_newer_meat.php We noticed that the VG Classic menu item featuring a Beyond Burger\u00ae at Veggie Grill had different nutritional values for the patty alone than those posted on the Beyond [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16639","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16639","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16639"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16639\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16642,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16639\/revisions\/16642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16639"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16639"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16639"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}