Scraping nearly a month of a veganary lifestyle, I decided to try different store products that are non-animal and cruelty free. The range stretches from oatmilk to meatless chicken–a strange reality, though a delicious one.
To begin a day with one of the various products, I consumed Silk almond milk yogurt. The product is devoid of milk or dairy, using almond milk instead to instill that creamy texture within the yogurt. In many ways, I’d argue, it tastes way better than regular yogurt. This, however, may be due to the sugar content.
Similar to many other vegan products, the sugar goes overboard. One container of yogurt contains around 22 grams of sugar. That is almost the amount of daily sugar a woman should have and a gargantuan portion of what men should consume each day. This seems more of a treat than an everyday snack.
As alternative yogurt settles for a sugar-doused breakfast or lunch, dinner appears very different. A brand named Boca produces its famous Boca burgers, providing a meatless alternative for hamburgers. A common thought is that these burgers taste disgusting and that they’re better off with ketchup or condiments, though I’d argue the opposite. This is one of the oddest misconceptions since the Boca burger tastes as though a chicken patty–in “burger form”. It is made out of tofu and other extracts to give it its meat-like flavor and tide all the junk cravings people might have. The Boca burger contains 90 calories and sits rather well.
As it pertains to a freezing dessert, the classic Ben & Jerry’s holds a few wonderful vegan alternatives. One ice cream in particular, peanut butter and cookies, gives a decent crunch that tastes the same as any other ice cream. Almond milk goes as far as plain, processed cow milk as is shown by bold, veganary initiatives by food companies.
All in all, store products are very consistent in that they give what they offer. Whether it is access to the junk food feeling that fast food meat offers or anything else with dairy, increasingly diverse and creative vegan alternatives are making mealtimes more animal-friendly and helpful to the environment. The sugar content across the board, however, could be tuned down a little. In the end, it shouldn’t be as difficult to find organic products outside of raw fruit or vegetables.