The document discusses the differences between plant-based and vegan diets and products. A plant-based diet focuses on fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes, while veganism excludes all animal products including meat, eggs and dairy. Some plant-based meat alternatives use animal-derived ingredients like calves' blood which are not vegan. True vegan products avoid animal cruelty and do not contain animal products or by-products. As more plant-based options emerge, it is important for consumers to understand how the products are made and whether they align with a vegan philosophy.

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November 22, 2019
Plant Based Vs Vegan – What’s the Difference?
nightowlvegan.com/plant-based-vs-vegan
General
What is Plant Based? What is Vegan?
Knowing the difference between plant-based and vegan may seem like splitting hairs, but it’s
not. Do you know the difference between a plant-based meat product and ground beef, a
chicken strip or an egg? Some plant-based companies use ingredients that are absolutely not
Vegan.
New plant-based products are introduced nearly every day to encourage us to consume less
meat and dairy. The documentaries and medical studies are proving a plant-based diet can
eliminate disease and possibly save our planet from the harmful effects of factory farming.
There are philosophical differences of opinion about what is “vegan” and what is “plant-
based”. As you venture through your journey toward better health, understanding the
difference between the two might determine what you eat, what you wear and how you live.
See: What is Vegan, What is Not. Clarifying Blurred Lines
What is Plant-Based?

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According to Health.com A plant-based diet is a diet based on fruits, vegetables, whole
grains, and legumes.
What Is Vegan?
According to Vegan.com vegans chose not to consume dairy, eggs, or any other products of
animal origin.
Veganism is a way of life that attempts to exclude all forms of animal exploitation and
cruelty, be it from food, clothing, or any other purpose.
Image courtesy of DifferenceBetween.net
What is Plant-Based Meat?

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Plant-based meat manufacturers are using plant products such as peas, soy, and calves blood
to create plant-based meat.
For instance, Just is a San Francisco based company that
created the Just Egg, made from Mung beans, that
scrambles like a real egg. Just is also working with
Toriyama Waygu Beef to create a bio cell replica of the
beef tissue.
Toriyama Waygu Beef grows the bio cells in freshly
slaughtered calves’ blood in order to create the proper
homeostatic environment for meat bio cells. It is the bio
cell that contains the DNA properties.
Tyson Ventures is working with New Wave Foods, a San
Francisco start up on a Vegan Shrimp product. Puree of
baby shrimp is injected into bio cells to replicate the
shape, appearance, and taste of shrimp.
Beyond Meat creates ground “beef”, sausage and burger patties made with rice, bean, potato
starch and beets (to give the meat a bleeding effect, like ground beef).
The Impossible Burger is made primarily of soy, water, and coconut oil. However, the
Impossible Burger creates a genetically engineered heme substitute. Heme iron is found in
meat.
See: Heme Iron vs Non-Heme Iron in Food
The Center for Food Safety has called on the FDA to recall the Impossible Burger due to the
possible health impacts of genetically engineered heme.
For Vegans, bio cells grown in calves’ blood, baby shrimp puree and genetically engineered
animal blood can be barriers to these products based on the aversion to animal cruelty.
A vegan might skip the shrimp and create burgers from plants, beans, nuts & seeds. For
those seeking to eat fewer animal products that are fine with, or unaware of, these
manufacturing methods, these “plant-based” products may be an answer to world hunger
and the environmental devastation of factory farming.
Conclusion
As a vegan, it is exciting and encouraging to see so many new products on the market and
such an interest in a plant-based way of eating.

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As the major manufacturers come to the marketplace with meat, dairy and seafood
substitutes, how these products are created will either be off-putting or a non-issue
depending on your perspective.
Our choices to eat less meat, dairy and seafood will benefit the world community, we will,
however, need to be aware of how these alternative products are made and if they fit our
desires and lifestyle.
Sherimane Johnson
Sherimane Johnson is a vegan baker & chef. She is the owner of NaturallySweet Desserts &
Night Owl Vegan Meal Delivery Service. Sherimane has lived a plant-based lifestyle for nearly
10 years and attributes veganism to overcoming Type II diabetes.