JUST Settling for Less Nutrition

"The mission of the company is to try to build a healthier food system as fast as we possibly can. And we're going to do that by focusing on building technology and bringing products to people."
"But much more important than anything that we're doing are individual consumers in their everyday lives, in their own families deciding that they want to be a part of creating a healthier food system too."
"It's that shift, it's that drive, it's that leadership that is going to change this world. And I'm just really proud that we get to bring [our products] to Canadian consumers."
Josh Tetrick, co-founder, CEO, JUST Plant Egg

"[The most significant difference between the JUST Plant Egg and a poultry egg] is the absence of essential nutrients including vitamin B12, selenium, vitamin A, vitamin D, choline and two antioxidants -- lutein and zeaxanthin -- all of which reside primarily in the egg yolk."
Amanda Li, registered dietitian, Toronto

The mission statement of the JUST Plant Egg as repeated above, is clearly commercialization-oriented, an opportunity to grow yet another alternative food source to deliver protein, and present itself as an improvement over standard old stand-bys such as animal product-type poultry eggs, while delivering a message of environmental responsibility and virtuous superiority. Just -- another highly processed food product, presenting yet another choice for conscientious consumers, setting aside the emotionally charged purple prose of marketing environmental consciousness.

A presentation by food company Eat JUST, Inc., based where else? in Silicon Valley, where its 'folded scramble', labelled JUST Egg in the United States, introduced to the U.S. food market there several months ago, destined to be known as JUST Plant Egg when it reaches stores in Canada. It will be widely sold, in over 100 Walmart stores across Canada, in Whole Foods Market locations, available for the recommended retail price of $6.99, which will buy a four-pack in the freezer section.

This is a precooked product, meant to be reheated in a toaster, a microwave, oven or stovetop frying pan. Not exactly what is meant by 'whole food' in the sense that it is not quite as nature produced it, but rather, processed as nature might never have imagined it. The product can be used to prepare scrambled eggs for breakfast, in sandwiches, wraps burritos, stir-fries, grain bowls and fried rice.

The JUST Plant Egg is pre-cooked . Eat JUST, Inc.

The plant-based egg, which contains turmeric for its yolk-similar colouration, is favourably comparable to a standard egg in protein content. And while a hen's egg contains six or seven grams of protein, the JUST Plant Egg has a standard seven grams, cholesterol-free, with 100 calories, in comparison to a hen's 80, with seven grams of fat (0.5g saturated fat) as opposed to a conventional egg's five grams (1.5g saturated).

Basically, the Plant Egg is comprised largely of mung bean protein, is a non-GMO product, with all natural flavours. A new survey examining dietary preferences in the last six months suggests that vegetarians, vegans and pescatarians in Canada are increasing in number. "Canada may have more than 600K vegans now", (out of a total population count of 37.59 million), according to Sylvain Charlebois, senior director, Agri-Food Analytics Lab, Dalhousie University. "47.1 percent of Canadians would consider alternative sources of protein", the lab found, in a survey.

 

Eat JUST, Inc. is launching its plant-based egg in Canada this fall. Eat JUST, Inc.