My cousin is bugging me for eating raw. (I am losing weight and feeling great!) But she says that Boca is "natural" eating. I disagree. Does anyone know why Boca products have to be heated to 160 degrees? I don't like the fact that they have to be heated this much.

Do you mean Boca burgers and such, made out of soy? I highly doubt these products are raw, or even cooked at 160 degrees Fahrenheit.

I'd never heard of that company's products. I looked it up and copied the ingredients of the first product that I saw. Here is the ingredient list for a bruschetta burger:

WATER, SOY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, PARMESAN CHEESE (PASTEURIZED PART-SKIM MILK, CHEESE CULTURE, SALT, ENZYMES), OVEN ROASTED TOMATOES, ROLLED OATS, TEXTURED SOY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, BASIL, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF METHYLCELLULOSE, BROWN RICE, PAPRIKA, SALT, HYDROLYZED SOY AND CORN PROTEIN, YEAST EXTRACT, BUTTERMILK, TOMATO POWDER, NATURAL FLAVOR, ONION POWDER, CARAMEL COLOR, DISODIUM GUANYLATE, DISODIUM INOSINATE, WHEAT. CONTAINS: SOY, MILK, WHEAT.

For lots of reasons, I prefer to avoid soy, dairy products, hydrolyzed anything, artificial coloring, things that sound like guanylate and inosinate, etc. Perhaps she feels fine eating that (there are worse things) and that's her choice, but it isn't fair for her to bug you about your choice to eat raw.

I'm glad you are losing weight and feeling great. You'll make a great role model for your cousin!


My favorite raw vegan

Thanks, both, for the guidance and support. I agree. My cousin eats them, not me. Your info makes me sure I am doing right for myself by not eating them. It just made me wonder if it isn't "meat" then why the high cooking temp? I am grateful for this site; a place where I can come for clarity.

Boca products, though tasty(they are meat analogs and so appeal to the palates of those still accustomed to flesh) are about as far from natural as a vegetarian product can be. I actually laughed when I read that--you'd be hard pressed to make a Boca Burger in your home kitchen from common food ingredients and without the use of a commercial extruder, a hydrolization plant, and possibly the Hadron Collider : )

haha cute

Ha! ha! Funny. Well, they certainly are not within the realm of the raw vegan ideal. On the other hand.....in general.....I would recommend the sawdust and rubber band diet if I thought it would steer people away from meat & dairy and closer to fresh fruits & vegetables. If Boca burgers are some one's attempt to reduce meat and animal products.....I would support that.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com