WEBVTT

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- Beyond Meat, one of
the two big companies

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still pushing plant-based
meat alternatives

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hasn't been having the
best time of it lately,

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especially financially.

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What likely won't make life
easier for the fake meat-makers

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is the reported state

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of one of its major East
Coast packaging plants.

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Bloomberg reported,

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based on leaked images and
documents from an ex-employee,

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that one of the company's
packaging plants in Pennsylvania

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had pretty rough conditions.

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Though rough might be a generous term

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for mold being found on
walls and containers.

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There's even a picture
of a large trolley cart

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sticking out the funnel of a large mixer.

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By the way, that's not
supposed to be there.

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The report also mentioned
internal documents

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that show there's been instances
of bacteria called listeria

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found inside the food itself.

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The bacteria can cause
pretty severe food poisoning

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when it's left in uncooked
food, though, it's unclear

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if any contaminated food
made it out to consumers.

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Oh, but that's not all.

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Documents also show some packaged products

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did contain foreign contaminants.

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Stuff like string, wood or plastics.

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Costco in Canada did recall

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some of its Beyond Meat products last year

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after finding wood in some
of its product packaging.

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Though to be clear,

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we don't know where Costco
sourced its Beyond Meat from.

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The company bought the
plant from an old partner

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back in 2020 as it was expanding its reach

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into the US and other global markets.

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The company told us the state inspections

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from March and September this year

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found they were all in compliance.

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Though the latest inspection was limited,

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according to Pennsylvania's
agricultural department.

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Beyond Meat has been
struggling as of late,

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even compared to the likes
of its main competitor,

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Impossible.

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The company had to lay off a
fifth of its whole workforce

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last month amid sliding revenues.

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Last year, the company was
thinking of adding raw production

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to the Pennsylvania plant,

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though they paused those plans
after these latest setbacks.

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I mean, I've never had a
problem with plant-based meat.

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Have you tried fake chicken nuggets?

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They're really not that bad.

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But you have a lot of
reactionaries trying to paint

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plant-based meat as part of
the ongoing culture wars.

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Cracker Barrel fans told the
restaurant chain on Facebook,

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go woke, go broke,

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when they introduced new
impossible sausage to the menu.

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Poor conditions at packaging plants

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probably won't do anything to
help plant-based meat's image.

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The FDA recently gave the
green light for lab-grown meat.

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So while we all wait for
real, fake hamburgers

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to hit the market,

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I may need some help picking
wood chips outta my hamburgers.

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