Analysis shows that fake meat alternatives can contain more salt, fat and calories than their real counterparts.
MailOnline found that some fake bacon products can be almost five times as salty as a portion of large McDonald’s fries.
Just 100g of This Is’t Bacon Plant Based Lardons contains 3.8g of salt.
Real bacon contains only 2.8 grams for the same amount, our probe discovered.
A large portion of McDonald’s fries – famous for their salty taste – contain 0.82 grams of salt.
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MailOnline’s audit of dozens of vegan meat products sold at Tesco comes after actor Martin Freeman revealed he has given up vegetarianism after 38 years because meat replacement products are ‘very, very processed’.
The Sherlock star, 52, admitted that now that he has returned to eating meat he could finally enjoy the ‘food of the gods’ – pork pies and Scotch eggs.
Top dietitian and BDA spokesperson Dr Duane Mellor said: ‘Just because something is meat-free should not be assumed to be a healthier option than the meat alternative.
‘After all, a meat-free cake or sausage roll remains a cake or sausage roll.
‘For meat-free products such as vegetable or soy mince, these are often not high in salt and not highly processed.
‘But many meat-free sausages, for example, can contain as much or more salt than the meat equivalents.’
A Beyond Meat plant-based burger contains more fat per 100g (19g) than a regular Aberdeen Angus beef burger (17.3g), according to our audit of more than 90 meat-free products
Some meat-free chicken alternatives contain almost double the calories and as much as 10 times the fat.
For example, a Vivera Plant Chicken Breast contains 203 calories and 16 g of fat per 100 g.
100 g Richmond Vegan No Chicken Pieces Roast Flavored contains 1.5 g salt, 4.6 g fat and 143 calories.
For comparison: a regular chicken fillet contains 106 calories per 100 g. It contains 1.1 g of fat and 0.15 g of salt before it is cooked or seasoned.
In terms of calories, Birds Eye Green Cuisine Chicken Free Southern Fried Grills (318) had 50 more per 100g than the meat version Birds Eye Southern Fried Chicken (268).
The average woman is advised to eat 2,000 every day to maintain a healthy weight, and 2,500 is recommended for the average man.
As for fish, Vivera Plant Salmon Style Fillets contain 203 calories and 16g of fat per 100g, which is very similar to the real thing. 100 g of salmon fillet contains 209 calories and 12 g of fat.
When it comes to battered fish, nutritional information shows that you’re better off eating a real fillet.
Birds Eye Green Cuisine Fishless Battered Fillets contain 250 calories, 12 g fat and 1.2 g salt per 100 g. While Birds Eye Battered Fish Fillets contain 243 calories and 1.2g of salt per 100g, it contains slightly more fat at 14g.
A plant-based burger from Beyond Meat contains 252 calories, 5.6 g of saturated fat and 0.75 g of salt per 100 g.
Meanwhile, Tesco Finest Aberdeen Angus beef burgers, raw, contain 259 calories, 7.3g saturated fat and 0.84g salt per 100g.
A McDonald’s beef patty contains even fewer calories (186 calories).
A third of our daily energy should come from fat, but the majority should be unsaturated, according to the BDA. Adults should consume about 70 grams of fat per day if you are a woman and 90 grams if you are a man.
Adults should consume no more than 30 grams of saturated fat.
If the total fat content of a product is more than 17.5 g per 100 g, it is considered high fat and more than 5 g of saturated fat is also considered high.
When it comes to battered fish, nutritional information shows that you’re better off eating a real fillet
Most sausages are high in fat and salt, whether they are meat-free or not.
A plant-based sausage from Beyond Meat contains 223 calories per 100 grams, 15 grams of fat and 1.15 grams of salt. Linda McCartney’s vegetarian sausages contain 1.6g of salt per 100g, but only 155 calories and 5.6g of fat.
In comparison, Tesco Finest pork sausages contain 308 calories, contain 25.3g of fat and 1.27g of salt per 100g.
Like sausages, most bacon products also contain a lot of salt.
Richmond Meat Free Vegan Streaky Bacon contains 178 calories and contains 10 g fat and 2.8 g salt per 100 g.
According to the NHS, adults should have less than 6 grams of salt per day.
If you want to improve your diet as a vegetarian or vegan, Dr. Mellor suggests adding beans and lentils and vegetarian minced meat to your meals.
He said: ‘It often has to do with why people eat meat-free alternatives, as simply swapping a less healthy option for a meat-free alternative is unlikely to improve your diet.
‘However, a carefully planned meat-free diet that includes vegetarian mince and other products in moderation, along with other nutritious, naturally meat-free foods such as beans and lentils, can help create a healthy diet for most people.’
A Tesco spokesperson said: ‘The health of our customers is incredibly important to us and we are always looking for ways to improve our recipes.
‘We have worked hard to reduce the salt and fat content in our own brand foods, including meat alternatives, without compromising on quality, taste or enjoyment.
‘We passionately believe that healthy, sustainably produced food should be accessible to everyone. That is why we offer a wide choice of healthy options in our product range, so that our customers can make healthier choices, with or without meat.’
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