Science has brought us a new way to enjoy a juicy burger, and one that is better for our planet. Silicon Valley-based company Beyond Meat has created a meatless burger that looks and tastes like the real thing. “Beyond Burger” has made its way into the meat section of the biggest US supermarket chain, Kroger, starting from June of this year.

Many other plant-protein burgers have been on the market for years, but most of these look and taste very different from meat and are marketed to people who don’t eat meat. Beyond Meat is doing things a little differently, and worked for more than seven years to create their pea-protein patty to make meat eaters think they’re eating a regular hamburger.

Instead of focusing on people who don’t eat meat, Beyond Meat wants to market their burger to meat eaters. The company aims to replace animal protein diets with plant protein diets. To do this, the California company knows they’ve got to give meat eaters what they love – a juicy burger.

So far, food critics are giving Beyond Burger a thumbs up, saying the burgers look, feel, and taste just like the real thing. The burger even “bleeds” – that is, the beet juice that gives the patty its pink center makes it look just like a rare hamburger.

Beyond Meat launched their product last year in Whole Foods, a popular natural foods supermarket chain in the US. This summer, the company brought their burgers to a number of other businesses, including Alamo Drafthouse, a popular dine-and-watch cinema chain, and Chicago burger chain Epic Burger.

Beyond Burger isn’t exactly a healthier alternative to meat. The patty still has about the same amount of calories and fat as a regular hamburger – and quite a bit more sodium. But it is better for our planet. The beef industry is one of the biggest causes of global warming. Plant-based diets are better for the Earth, and as Professor Tim Benton of the University of Leeds told The Guardian in 2014: “The biggest intervention people could make towards reducing their carbon footprints would not be to abandon cars, but to eat significantly less red meat.” Perhaps Beyond Burger is a step in this direction.

A Californian company has brought us a new type of juicy burger, and one that is better for the Earth. Beyond Meat created a meatless burger that looks and tastes like a regular hamburger. “Beyond Burger” is in the meat section of the biggest US supermarket company, Kroger, starting from June of this year.

Many other meatless burgers have been on the market for years, but most of these look and taste very different from meat. Most meatless burgers are marketed to people who don’t eat meat. Beyond Meat is doing things a little differently. The company worked for more than seven years to make their meatless patty, so even meat eaters think they’re eating a regular hamburger.

Beyond Meat wants to bring their burger to meat eaters. The company aims to get people to stop eating meat, and eat more plant-based diets. To do this, the California company knows they’ve got to give meat eaters what they love – a juicy burger.

So far, food critics are saying the Beyond Burger looks, feels, and tastes just like a regular hamburger. The burger even “bleeds” – that is, beet juice gives the patty a pink center and makes it look just like a rare hamburger.

Beyond Meat introduced their product last year in Whole Foods, a popular natural foods supermarket company in the US. This summer, other businesses started selling Beyond Burgers. Alamo Drafthouse, a popular dine-and-watch cinema company, and Chicago burger company Epic Burger both serve the meatless burgers.

Beyond Burger isn’t really healthier than real meat. The patty still has about the same amount of calories and fat as a regular hamburger. The burger also has quite a bit more salt. But it is better for our planet.

The beef industry is one of the biggest causes of global warming. Growing plants is better for the Earth than raising cows. In 2014, Professor Tim Benton of the University of Leeds told The Guardian that the biggest thing people could do to stop global warming is to eat a lot less red meat. Perhaps Beyond Burger is a way to do that.