Current Events > I bought a vegan ice cream that's chemically similar to real ice cream.

(+) Yeah! (+)

I recently bought several pints of vegan ice cream from a company called Brave Robot. I'm fine with most vegan ice cream, but it doesn't have as good of a mouthfeel as regular ice cream.

But Brave Robot ice cream is different. They use genetically-modified microflora that produce whey and casein, proteins normally only found in dairy milk. By using these proteins they can make a vegan ice cream that has a similar texture to dairy ice cream. The other advantage is they use a different kind of sugar, so it's also safe for people with lactose intolerance.

This could have a huge impact on the dairy industry. Dairy is in everything. And despite that the profit margins are really low, with a large portion of the profits coming from government subsidies. If this protein can be made like this on a large scale it's could be as big of a game changer as they expect lab-grown meat to be. This would also be a huge hit on the beef and leather industries.

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Bump so everyone can learn about the potential future of dairy.

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I'll stick to actual dairy.

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This is pretty great stuff. They're doing better and better with most vegan products and many taste just as good now in my experience.

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Son Of Spam posted...

hey use genetically-modified microflora that produce whey and casein, proteins normally only found in dairy milk.

Tag so I can look this up further
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Does it set off dairy allergies? Because that's the real white whale to me. Veganism is a choice, and lactose intolerance is an inconvenience, but people allergic to dairy miss out on a lot because of the whole not wanting to die thing.

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https://tofutti.com/frozen-desserts-2/cuties/

This shit tastes pretty fucking good I gotta say. You can probably give these to people and they'd never know it wasn't vegan.

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Sounds cool. If I ever see it around I'll give it a try.

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Tyranthraxus posted...

https://tofutti.com/frozen-desserts-2/cuties/

This shit tastes pretty fucking good I gotta say. You can probably give these to people and they'd never know it wasn't vegan.

Every time someone has made that claim, I can immediately tell the vegan option.
There is no vegan product that can't be distinguished from the none vegan option.

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NightRender posted...

Does it set off dairy allergies? Because that's the real white whale to me. Veganism is a choice, and lactose intolerance is an inconvenience, but people allergic to dairy miss out on a lot because of the whole not wanting to die thing.

Most dairy allergies are related to the milk proteins, so I'm guessing it would have a similar issue for people eating this kind of product. But it is good for people with lactose intolerance at least since they can replace the lactose.

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meestermj posted...

Every time someone has made that claim, I can immediately tell the vegan option.
There is no vegan product that can't be distinguished from the none vegan option.

I cant tell.

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meestermj posted...

Every time someone has made that claim, I can immediately tell the vegan option.
There is no vegan product that can't be distinguished from the none vegan option.

You should give them a try. Even if you can tell, they still taste really fucking good and don't cost more than regular ice cream.

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Tyranthraxus posted...

You should give them a try. Even if you can tell, they still taste really fucking good and don't cost more than regular ice cream.

Oh I don't doubt they taste good.
But to say someone wouldn't be able to tell is disingenuous and part of what makes people dislike vegan products.
People don't like being fooled, and will be less likely to try products again if they have a "gotcha!" moment.

Just say "it tastes good, try it." And leave it at that.

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This sounds amazing, but there's no way these niche vegan products arent shitty for the environment

I hope I'm wrong

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MedeaLysistrata posted...

This sounds amazing, but there's no way these niche vegan products arent shitty for the environment

I hope I'm wrong

Vegan products do have a rough history of trampling the environment for their goods.

Just look at the agave/bat situation a few years ago.

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meestermj posted...

Vegan products do have a rough history of trampling the environment for their goods.

Just look at the agave/bat situation a few years ago.

Yeah, I mean basically any niche food that has a unique process is gonna be a drag, I'd wager

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meestermj posted...

Oh I don't doubt they taste good.
But to say someone wouldn't be able to tell is disingenuous and part of what makes people dislike vegan products.
People don't like being fooled, and will be less likely to try products again if they have a "gotcha!" moment.

Just say "it tastes good, try it." And leave it at that.

Man I agree with you for 99.999% vegan everything with cheese being the worst offender. And TVP Lunch meat anything is vomit inducing.

But this shit is really something else.

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Animal farming is horrendous for the environment as well given how much feed you need for them, and given the scale of it I'd wager it does far more harm than vegan products.

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Funkydog posted...

Animal farming is horrendous for the environment as well given how much feed you need for them, and given the scale of it I'd wager it does far more harm than vegan products.

Possibly. Excepy Vegans claim to want to protect animals and the environment, and yet time and again their products have proved devastating to local environments or animal populations.
Hell the vegan industry is actively harming honey bee populations.

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I bought a real ice cream that's actually ice cream. It's fantastic

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meestermj posted...

Possibly. Excepy Vegans claim to want to protect animals and the environment, and yet time and again their products have proved devastating to local environments or animal populations.
Hell the vegan industry is actively harming honey bee populations.

The damage being done by vegans overall is insignificant compared to the damage being done because of the beef industry's contribution to climate change. There's no way to survive without hurting something but you can try to find ways to reduce the damage you do.

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meestermj posted...

Possibly. Excepy Vegans claim to want to protect animals and the environment, and yet time and again their products have proved devastating to local environments or animal populations.
Hell the vegan industry is actively harming honey bee populations.

Companies being shitty isn't really vegan's fault. I think most of us want to do the least amount of harm we can, but 99% of companies being shitty makes it hard. So we seek out ways to do the least harm we can within our capabilities. It's like not wanting to buy Nestle products isn't as easy as not buying their chocolate, buying food products that do no harm isn't easy.

The bee thing I can't really argue. I know it's a debated thing/stance with many of the other vegans I know.

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It's not just vegan food it's anything that relies on rare products and complex supply chains

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Yuck

Dunno why people feel the need to act offended by this sort of thing tbh

I'll try it, could be great

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Tyranthraxus posted...

The damage being done by vegans overall is insignificant compared to the damage being done because of the beef industry's contribution to climate change. There's no way to survive without hurting something but you can try to find ways to reduce the damage you do.

Nobody is arguing we shouldn't do better.

It is entirely possible to operate an ethical company, and there are many ethical vegan products.
I may dislike the industrial farming complex, but to dismantle it now would mean making some species extinct, or destroying ecosystems.

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MedeaLysistrata posted...

This sounds amazing, but there's no way these niche vegan products arent shitty for the environment

I hope I'm wrong

The process they are using isn't that far off from many other techniques we use for mass producing certain food products. Many food additives like xanthan gum are made by fermenting bacteria. The same is true for many vitamins, like B12. If you eat a cereal, it's probably been fortified with B12 made from fermented bacteria. If you have ever ate factory-farmed pork or chicken it has probably been given feed its whole life that has been fortified the same way.

And it's really hard to make something that is more harmful environmentally than dairy is.

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Son Of Spam posted...

The process they are using isn't that far off from many other techniques we use for mass producing certain food products. Many food additives like xanthan gum are made by fermenting bacteria. The same is true for many vitamins, like B12. If you eat a cereal, it's probably been fortified with B12 made from fermented bacteria. If you have ever ate factory-farmed pork or chicken it has probably been given feed its whole life that has been fortified the same way.

And it's really hard to make something that is more harmful environmentally than dairy is.

Cool

Every time I hear something about a microfauna or rare kind of seed or something, it just strikes me as if making a lot of that thing is more effort than it should be worth

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Son Of Spam posted...

The process they are using isn't that far off from many other techniques we use for mass producing certain food products. Many food additives like xanthan gum are made by fermenting bacteria. The same is true for many vitamins, like B12. If you eat a cereal, it's probably been fortified with B12 made from fermented bacteria. If you have ever ate factory-farmed pork or chicken it has probably been given feed its whole life that has been fortified the same way.

And it's really hard to make something that is more harmful environmentally than dairy is.

I'm optimistic then! I like supporting ethically sourced products, vegan or non.

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If anybody is interested in more info about it, here is the company that makes the proteins.

https://perfectdayfoods.com/

And here is where I bought it. It's pretty expensive at the moment. $10-14.50 a pint. Though they currently have a coupon for 50% off (PS5). Note to mods, I'm not trying to advertise. I just really think it's interesting.

https://braverobot.co/

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TC when he eats his ice cream:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuiR1iNsyvc

meestermj posted...

Nobody is arguing we shouldn't do better.

It is entirely possible to operate an ethical company, and there are many ethical vegan products.
I may dislike the industrial farming complex, but to dismantle it now would mean making some species extinct, or destroying ecosystems.

I don't think anyone is trying to dismantle the farming complex. The best way to tackle the issue is to simply convince people that vegan alternatives can be just as good. In some cases they already are. Most people have moved away from things like lard and use shortening instead.

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FrankJaegr posted...

TC when he eats his ice cream:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuiR1iNsyvc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CeZlih4DDNg

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Tyranthraxus posted...

I don't think anyone is trying to dismantle the farming complex. The best way to tackle the issue is to simply convince people that vegan alternatives can be just as good. In some cases they already are. Most people have moved away from things like lard and use shortening instead.

Yes, try to convince people that vegan products are good and tasty.
But trying to fool people, telling them it's "indistinguishable", is not the way to go about it.
The end goal is good, the method is wrong.

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pretty cool stuff. never heard of that. I like the ben and jerry's non dairy ice creams better than the dairy ones. need to look into this and tofutti

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How does it compare price-wise to normal ice cream?

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LostForest posted...

How does it compare price-wise to normal ice cream?

Son Of Spam posted...

$10-14.50 a pint.

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meestermj posted...

Yes, try to convince people that vegan products are good and tasty.
But trying to fool people, telling them it's "indistinguishable", is not the way to go about it.
The end goal is good, the method is wrong.

In the case of this Brave Robot ice cream, I can confidently say that most people really wouldn't know if they tried it. Milk is a pretty basic substance. It has water, fat, sugar, protein, vitamins, minerals, and a few trace amounts of enzymes. Almost all of that is easily sourced without animals. Unlike non-dairy ice cream that tries to replicate dairy it practically IS dairy.

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>Brave Robot



First thing I thought of

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Son Of Spam posted...

In the case of this Brave Robot ice cream, I can confidently say that most people really wouldn't know if they tried it. Milk is a pretty basic substance. It has water, fat, sugar, protein, vitamins, minerals, and a few trace amounts of enzymes. Almost all of that is easily sourced without animals. Unlike non-dairy ice cream that tries to replicate dairy it practically IS dairy.

I'll try it, and I hope it's delicious.

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Son Of Spam posted...

In the case of this Brave Robot ice cream, I can confidently say that most people really wouldn't know if they tried it. Milk is a pretty basic substance. It has water, fat, sugar, protein, vitamins, minerals, and a few trace amounts of enzymes. Almost all of that is easily sourced without animals. Unlike non-dairy ice cream that tries to replicate dairy it practically IS dairy.

I can't eat lactose. Is that added in too? I'm gonna be pissed if I buy 15 dollar vegan ice cream and can't eat it because they added lactose to it.

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RenescoStCewl posted...

I can't eat lactose. Is that added in too? I'm gonna be pissed if I buy 15 dollar vegan ice cream and can't eat it because they added lactose to it.

If they're advertising it as vegan then it probably doesn't have lactose as I don't think there are any vegan sources of lactose.

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RenescoStCewl posted...

I can't eat lactose. Is that added in too? I'm gonna be pissed if I buy 15 dollar vegan ice cream and can't eat it because they added lactose to it.

No. They replace the lactose with cane sugar so that it's safe for lactose-intolerant people. Though it might not be safe for those with dairy allergies since that is usually caused by dairy protein.

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I remember reading about one of these companies but I didn't know anything like it was on the market already. I'll have to try it if I can. I've become more of an ice cream fan since going vegan because I can eat it without getting the shits now <_<

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TheLiarParadox posted...

I remember reading about one of these companies but I didn't know anything like it was on the market already. I'll have to try it if I can. I've become more of an ice cream fan since going vegan because I can eat it without getting the shits now <_<

The thing that got me excited about it when I read about it is the potential for vegan cheese. Vegan ice cream is fine to me, but vegan cheese still leaves a lot to be desired, though it has improved in recent years.

The other thing that interested me is its potential impact on the dairy industry, and by association the beef and leather industry as well. This stuff is already on the market at a somewhat reasonable price. It could be a huge disrupter to dairy's already struggling market share.

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meestermj posted...

$10-14.50 a pint.

This isn't just expensive, this is like, ludicrously, comically expensive.

Standard ice cream runs about $2.50 for a half gallon. A comparable price for the same amount of that stuff would be like $50 bucks.

If they want to become relevant they're going to have to find a way to knock that price down, cuz that's outrageous.

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Son Of Spam posted...

The thing that got me excited about it when I read about it is the potential for vegan cheese. Vegan ice cream is fine to me, but vegan cheese still leaves a lot to be desired, though it has improved in recent years.

The other thing that interested me is its potential impact on the dairy industry, and by association the beef and leather industry as well. This stuff is already on the market at a somewhat reasonable price. It could be a huge disrupter to dairy's already struggling market share.

Cheese has never been a big deal for me, honestly don't even try to replicate it very often, but I know a lot of vegetarian who are holding out because they're so put off by vegan cheese. Don't agree with that decision at all but if this can lead to a better replacement, I think there's a pretty good chance they'll give up the cow stuff.

Definitely would be a win all around if it's good enough.

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How is the price? I am not opposed to synth food as long as they don't make it a gimmick and jack up the prices

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