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TL;DR: hell yes they are. Plant-plastic is not “green” or friendly to the environment in any way. (It’s also not vegan.)

The iconic American brand Coca-Cola–historically no friend to the environment or to consumers in foreign markets–just announced the first plant-based plastic bottle. Coca-Cola, the world’s leading producer of plastic waste, generating more than 2.9 tons of plastic waste per year, has recently decided to go green–by making plant-plastic.

I came across this article on the LinkedIn feed for Vegan Business News and immediately questioned whether this development is vegan (it’s not), and whether this development is merely green-washing, roughly defined as the practice of making something look very eco-friendly and environmentally conscious for the purpose of cultivating consumer good-will (it is). Green-washing is also called eco-washing, or referred to as trying to add a “green halo” to a product to make consumers think it is good for the plant or the environment. The more I thought about it, the more annoyed I got.

My initial comment: “So…we’re going to continue to have microplastics pollution and regular plastic pollution, just now it will also be made from plants? I don’t buy it. Why not use glass or aluminum, both of which are much more easily recycled and have a longer useful life? This is greenwashing, plain and simple simple.  #greenwashing #notVegan #NotAVeganBusiness

One response I received claimed: “because the glass and can solutions are not clean either and the costs will not easily transfer to consumers. compostable would do…we are heading in that direction.” I’m not going to name the author of that comment, since he clearly had not read the article–this magical new plant-plastic will NOT be compostable.

Plant-Plastic is Still Plastic

Let’s start with the obvious: the plant-based plastic IS STILL PLASTIC.

Bottles? Unlikely to be recycled. Caps? NOT recyclable, despite that chasing-arrows recycling logo. Plastic bottle holder? Destined to choke wildlife.

Personally, I do not see how the solution to the single-use plastic problem is to make more single-use plastic. According to the article linked above, the plant-based plastic called bPET “is identical in molecular structure to virgin fossil-based PET.” This means that regardless of the ingredients, plastic is plastic. A spokesperson for Coca-Cola explained that the plant-plastic “can be mixed with rPET and virgin oil-based materials interchangeably including in the recycle stream.” These plant-plastic bottles will not be reusable or compostable. Coca-Cola is planning to increase its own capacity to recycle plastic (more on why that’s problematic below), but it’s still plastic.

Plastic is a “forever” product.

Since the plant-plastic is identical to the plastic we already have, with the same molecular structure, plant-plastic will pose all of the same problems as plastic. Plastic is not biodegradable and cannot be composted. (The corn-based “compostable plastic” forks and other single-use items you have seen? NOT compostable in municipal compost, where that service even exists. If you’ve experimented with composting these in your backyard composter, I’d love to hear how long it took them to fully break down. Oh, and some of them break down into micro-plastics!) The majority of plastic is not recycled, even if you put it into your recycling bin, assuming you even have recycling where you live. (People like to cite the statistic that “74% of Americans have access to recycling” but they always leave out the fact that data is based on access to recycle glass and aluminum–not plastic.) I’ve talked about this in prior posts, such as this one. In the past much of our plastic waste was shipped to China for recycling, but China started rejecting shipments before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Plastic is the wrong kind of “forever.”

Aluminum (made from metal minerals) and glass (made from silica, limestone, and soda ash) are “forever renewable.” You can basically reuse or recycle your aluminum beverage can or your glass beverage bottle until the end of time. (More on that when we talk alternatives.) Unlike aluminum and glass, plastic cannot be endlessly recycled. The article about Coca-Colas plant-plastic admits this: “While the majority of the company’s plastic packaging material will come from recycled content, some ‘virgin’ material will apparently still be needed to maintain packaging quality.” In other words, to continue using this plant-plastic, they will have to continue to produce more plastic! More single-use plastic is simply a bad idea.

Grow Plants to Eat, Not to Plastic!

I didn’t do a deep-dive into land use for this post, but if you’d like to, please drop a comment. A basic fact of planet Earth is that we have limited arable land, meaning land that can grow plants on it. Quite a bit of land is unavailable to grow plants for human use–deserts, swamps, wetlands, permafrost, etc.–so we should probably be thoughtful about how we choose to use the land that we do have available to us. I’m not going to argue we are doing a good job with this, but in a world where we’re already mowing down rainforest to start cattle ranches, shouldn’t we be focused on using our arable land for crops to feed humans and animals? (I’m not debating whether to go vegetarian or vegan here, that’s a different convo.) Doesn’t it seem like a bad idea to set aside land to grow plants to turn into plastic? Especially for the world’s largest producer of plastic waste (plastic that is not recycled)? It does to me, especially when climate change is threatening to take away some of the land we currently use, whether due to rising sea levels, change in the growing season conditions, or increase in severe weather events (including droughts and floods).

Plant-Plastic Will Likely Get Incinerated

According to the article cited above, Coca-Cola plant to introduce the plant-plastic in Europe. Unlike the United States, where few things are diverted for reuse or recycling and the remainder go to landfills, a large chunk of Europe produces less waste to start with and then deals with the rest using a trash incinerator. (Read about those here.) Currently many of them are “trash to energy” incinerators with environmental controls for many of the most dangerous pollutants and for particulate matter. That’s where single use plastic goes too—and “Burning plastic in a climate emergency, that’s insane,” said Georgia Elliott-Smith, an environmental engineer, according to that article. Even the most environmentally-friendly of these trash incinerators are falling out of favor in the age of climate change, as they produce CO2 (which we all know is a bad idea). As much as Coca-Cola claims they are going to collect and re-use this plant-plastic, in reality they have little impact on what consumers choose to do with empty plant-plastic bottles. The UK burns more than it recycles (across the board); why should we expect the rest of Europe to suddenly get on board with recycling for plant-plastic? We should not. Incinerated plant-plastic will contribute to CO2 production, which is the opposite of the eco-friendly label Coca-Cola has put on their plant-plastic. This, my friends, is greenwashing.

We Have The Alternatives

Glass

(c) Taras Chernus

Glass is endlessly recyclable. One article describes the state of glass recycling as sadly broken, and notes: “glass can be recycled endlessly by crushing, blending, and melting it together with sand and other starting materials.” The components are basically sand (silica), limestone, and soda ash. The article notes that about one-third of the glass in the U.S. is actually recycled (versus putting it in a recycling bin and then it goes to a landfill). This is a problem that is potentially fix-able if we–or Coca-Cola–can devote resources to expanding glass reuse or recycling. (The same isn’t true of plastic, which is not endlessly recyclable.)

While glass does have the disadvantage of being heavier than plastic, which has an impact on shipping costs (and associated fossil fuel usage), large companies like Coca-Cola already use a distribution system where products are bottled in multiple locations with an eye towards reducing the shipping distance. (Let’s not forget that beer, wine, and spirits are almost exclusively bottled in glass in the United States, with some notable exceptions for aluminum cans, and continue to be shipped from coast to coast.) Coca-Cola continues to distribute products in glass bottles in many non-U.S. countries. Have you ever bought Coca-Cola imported from Mexico? Always in a glass bottle. Coca-Cola has other brands in its portfolio that are bottled in glass (not plastic) so this isn’t a stretch at all!

Coca-Cola could even lead the pack by returning to returnable–not recyclable–bottles. You might not remember those, but Coca-Cola vending machines used to dispense heavy glass bottles. (In the 80s and 90s we had one in the basement of the church where my Girl Scout troop met.) These were returned, sanitized, and refilled. As a kid I remember getting all of our family’s sodas at a place called Towne Club, a private-label warehouse-type brand, where we returned the bottles not for a deposit but to be reused. In Portland, several companies dispense their beer or cider into refillable growlers, and a few are part of a glass bottle return program. (Those bottles are washed and sanitized, then refilled for retail sale.) This isn’t a radical concept.

Aluminum

(c) Alexander Antropov

You know about aluminum, right? The stuff all Coca-Cola cans–and even some bottles!–are made of? Aluminum is the most valuable thing in your recycling bin. (That article has a great summary of how reusable aluminum is, an how much energy is conserved by recycling it instead of making it from scratch.) Like glass, aluminum is almost infinitely recyclable. Nearly 75% of all aluminum ever made is still in use today. You cannot say the same for plastic, the vast majority of which is in landfills (or perhaps the ocean, or burned in European incinerators).

How valuable is aluminum? When I worked in the Texas legislature and a bottle deposit came up for a vote, the reason it always failed was aluminum. Why? Independent recycling centers rely on the income from aluminum recycling–the buy-back price more than covers the operations to collect and recycle it–to fund their operations and help recycle cardboard, paper, #1 and #2 plastic, and glass.

Coca-Cola already makes aluminum bottles, which are lighter than glass ones and not much heavier (if at all) than plastic ones. Again, this is not a new or radical idea! If they took a serious interest in recycling aluminum on a world-wide basis, they could easily use more aluminum bottles and maybe even use less plastic to make bottles. That would make a bigger impact than inventing a fake “eco-friendly” plant-plastic.

(Steel might be an option too, though I don’t know whether Coca-Cola would react with steel. Gnarly Sports Nutrition recently started a shift away from the plastic tubs most nutrition companies use, in favor of steel. According to Gnarly Nutrition, steel has the highest recycling rate of any material at 71% while plastic is at 8%. Their packaging is tin-coated. The switch from plastic to steel increased the price of the tub by 80 cents.)

Creativity: Concentrating or Dry-Shipping Beverages

With just the tiniest bit of creativity, Coca-Cola could shift many of its brands out of plastic OR reduce the amount of plastic they use instead of using more and making it from plants to look “green.” One option would be to only ship concentrated beverages. They already do this, shipping containers of Coca-Cola syrup to restaurants that use a system to add carbonated water to the syrup to make your beverage–all fast food restaurants, and nearly all other restaurants, obtain Coca-Cola this way. If you’ve got a Soda Stream or similar carbonation device, you can buy concentrated soda syrups to flavor your carbonated water, essentially making your own soda by just adding (carbonated) water. This solution has already been implemented by liquid laundry soap and fabric softener manufacturers, many of whom now sell concentrated formulas that require smaller packages and therefore last plastic. (Skip these and go plastic-free for your laundry though.) Again, not a novel or crazy idea–and Coca-Cola is already doing it on a small-scale.

Another option would be to create formulas that can be shipped dry. For example, Coca-Cola owns many brands that make tea. Historically, tea was shipped dry (either in bulk or in individual tea bags). There’s no real reason why Coca-Cola couldn’t ship tea brands as dry tea, and it would probably require fewer additives (i.e. colorants to make the product’s color appealing on the shelf, stabilizers so it can wait in a package before you drink it, etc.). Given the amount of money they must have thrown into making plant-plastic, surely they could redirect a few bucks to making dry mixes for their non-tea products as well. Coca-Cola classic only has like six ingredients, and 90% of it is carbonated water! These reformulated dry products could be shipped in individual compostable/recyclable paper packets (like sugar) or in bulk packing like a tin, steel tub, or a glass jar, avoiding plastic altogether.

Paperboard boxes and aluminum cans are both more likely to be recycled than plastic anything.

Conclusion: “Plant-Based Plastic” IS Totally Greenwashing

Plant-Based News recently wrote an article explaining that Coca-Cola is vegan except when it isn’t. A similar post at LiveKindly agrees, and notes that Coca-Cola is also an environmental disaster for using so much plastic. (LiveKindly notes that Coca-Cola has made a public commitment to use 50% recycled materials by 2030, but as the article that led to this blog post indicates, that’s because they’re planning to use more plastic!) There’s nothing particularly vegan about plant-based plastic (unless you intend to eat the bottle, which I’m going to assume Coca-Cola does not recommend).

Plant-based plastic is not compostable and has the same molecular structure as regular plastic. This means a single-use plant-plastic bottle creates the same problem as an oil-based plastic bottle.

There is nothing eco-friendly or “green” about creating more single-use plastic. The obvious alternatives, aluminum and glass, are both already in use and endlessly recyclable. With creativity, Coca-Cola could ship products that are more concentrated (they do for restaurants) or dry, further reducing plastic use. Instead, they have opted to invest in plant-plastic and using arable land to grow plants to make plastic instead of food.

Consumers should not be fooled by this blatant attempt to reclassify plastic as environmentally friendly, “green,” or any other version of good for planet Earth.

Update! Many of the sales, deals, discounts, and codes are good through Small Business Saturday, or Cyber Monday. I’ve made notes where I was able to verify the information; if there is no note about expiration, it might have just been a Friday thing.

Note: exactly ZERO of these are sponsored promotions, and exactly ZERO of the links below are affiliate links. (If that changes, I’ll make a note by the specific product or link.) Inclusion of a product/race/service on this list isn’t an endorsement, though I have reviewed many of these products. The information below comes from email sent to me, twitter, and instagram. Did I miss anything? Leave a comment and let me know!

APPAREL

2XU–verified still active Saturday
40% off site-wide
Selected products up to 70% off
www.2xu.com

Aaptiv (apparel and gear)
25% off with code BLACKFRIDAY
https://store.aaptiv.com

ABombApparel
45% off plus free swag with code blackfriday45
https://www.abomb-apparel.com/

Alo Yoga–verified still active Saturday
30% off full-price (up to 70% off sale) with code ALO30
www.aloyoga.com

Bombas–verified still live on Saturday
20% off site-wide with code HOLIDAY20
https://bombas.com

Brooks–verified still live on Saturday
30% off select styles
Spend $120 get a free holiday tech tee or holiday socks
www.brooksrunning.com

BUFF–valid through Monday
25% of everything with code CYBERSALE
www.buffusa.com

Chase This Skirt–verified still live on Saturday
30% off store-wide (no code needed)
www.chasethisskirt.com

Fellow Flowers–good through SUNDAY!
10% off when you spend $50  code Holiday10
15% off when you spend $100 code Holiday15
20% off when you spend $125 code Holiday20
http://fellow-flowers.myshopify.com/

Handful
Buy 2 regular-price bras, get a free scoop neck tank
$10 off a $50 purchase with code #ShopSmall (Saturday)
https://handful.com/

Inversion Junkies–good through TUESDAY!
BOGO leggings with code BLACKFRIDAY16
inversionjunkie.com/collections/leggings

Legend Compression–good through MONDAY!
20% off $50+
30% off $100+
40% off $150+
code CYBERWEEK16
http://www.legendcompressionwear.com

Mizuno
20% off with code WHYWAIT20
www.mizunousa.com

Nuu Muu (athletic dresses)–good through 11/29!
25% off with code THANKYOU16
https://nuu-muu.com/

Oiselle–valid through Sunday!
15% off orders of $100+
20% off orders of $200+
30% off orders of $300+
www.oiselle.com

PACT (organic cotton clothes)–valid through the weekend
30-70% off site-wide on Friday, no code needed
https://wearpact.com

Pavement Runner/WeRunSocial–ongoing!
Everything marked down to $16 or less
http://pavementrunner.com/shop/

Physiclo (compression with resistance!)
save 25% with code HOLIDAY25
https://physiclo.com

PopFlex Active–valid through 11/28!
25% off all clothes and mats with code blackfri
http://www.popflexactive.com

Pro Compression–valid through Saturday!
50% Black Styles with code BLK
Free shipping on orders over $20
http://procompression.com/black-to-the-basics/

Raw Threads–valid through 11/28
15% off site-wide with code BLACKFRIDAY
25% off orders $100+ with code BLACKFRIDAY25
Free shipping (no code needed)
www.rawthreads.com

Reebok–verified still active on Saturday
50% off the Black Friday Collection code BF50
http://www.reebok.com/us/black_friday_collection

Simply Workout
30% (more on sale items!) with code TURKEYDAY
25% off with code BIGDEAL25
www.simplyworkout.com

Skirt Sports–valid through MONDAY!
15% off everything code BLACKFRIDAY15
Free shipping with $40 minimum purchase
www.skirtsports.com

SLS3 (compression)–valid through 11/28
up to 80% off with code CYBER50
BF2016 for 50% off and free shipping (today only)
http://www.slstri.com/

Sparkle Skirts–MONDAY ONLY
Buy 3, Get 1 Free (limited to B3G1 collection, see link)
FREESHIP2016 (covers up to $15 shipping fees)
http://www.sparkleskirts.com/collections/b3g1

Spiritual Gangster–verified valid on Saturday
40% off with code NAMASTE40
https://www.spiritualgangster.com/

Thorlos–valid through 12/31
30% off select clearance
Buy 3, get the 4th free
Free shipping in the US
https://www.thorlo.com

Toe Sox–verified valid on Saturday
25% off everything with code BESTSALEEVER
www.toesox.com

BODY CARE

Bunny Butt Apothecary–to 11/28
(small business soap, body cream, and more–delicious!)
25% off with code BLACKBUNNY16
http://bunnybuttapothecary.com/

Out of Africa–through 12/2
(fair trade, sustainable, cruelty-free, and more!)
20% off with code THANKSGIVING20
http://outofafricashea.com

Sumbody–CYBER MONDAY ONLY
free shipping on orders $35+ and a gift with code CYBER16
www.sumbody.com

EVENTS

Coastal Trail Runs/Zoom
20% off races through midnight only code blkfriday20
www.coastaltrailruns.com

Divas Half Marathon & 5k Series–valid through 11/28
$5 off any race with code THANKS16
http://www.runlikeadiva.com/

FitFam’s Elfie Run (benefits Toys for Tots!)
20% off with code BLACKFRIDAY20
http://elfie.run/

Hospital Hill–MONDAY ONLY
20% off with code Cyber17 (not valid on the family pricing package)
www.hospitalhillrun.com

Livermore Half Marathon–valid through MONDAY
The Town’s Half Marathon
$10 off with code THANKFUL2016
(apologies for the ugly link below, but imathlete wasn’t doing me any favors)
https://www.imathlete.com/events/EventReg/EventReg_SelectType.aspx?fEID=37198&fNew=1&fsource=imAEOverview

Mad Marathon–SUNDAY AND MONDAY only
$60 for either the 2016 Mad Marathon or Mad Half
www.madmarathon.com

The Phoenix Marathon
$20 off with code BFRIDAY20 (full and half only) until 11/29
http://thephoenixmarathon.com

PIG RUN of Lake Nona–Lucky 7th!
$5 off with code TURKEYPIGGY
http://www.pigrunoflakenona.com/

Seasick Events: Coast to Crest and Carmel Valley Trail
The Coast to Crest race is set for May 6, 2017 while the Carmel Valley trail race is set for Sept 9th, 2017. Registration for 40% off, this weekend only. Register for both events at once and receive 25% off automatically, AND if you include the code “HOLIDAY” you will receive an additional 15% off…  A TOTAL OF 40% OFF*!! (Registering for one event saves 15% off that event.)
www.seasickevents.com

Spartan Races
25% off all races with code HOLIDAY
Sale on gear & apparel
www.spartan.com

Surf City–valid through MONDAY
$20 off the half or full marathon with code BLACKFRIDAYSCM
https://www.imathlete.com/events/EventReg/EventReg_SelectType.asp

Todos Santos Half Marathon–MONDAY ONLY
$45 half marathon with code GRATITUDE
http://www.runtodossantos.com

Willamantic Classic–MONDAY ONLY
$6 off any distance with code CYBER
Introducing the Hop TWO It Relay option for the Half Marathon!
Two person teams, with the handoff at the Jillson Square midpoint of the race, convenient one stop parking, running, AND cheering plus fun team finisher medals. $55 on Cyber Monday, price goes up to $60 after.
http://www.willimanticathleticclub.org/Willimantic_Classic.html

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FOOD & NUTRITION

Aloha
30% off site-wide wide code FRIDAY SATURDAY
aloha.com

Amazing Greens
50% off with code HOLIDAY2016 through Monday!
free shipping on orders $75+
https://www.amazinggrass.com/store

Amino Vital–valid through MONDAY
30% off with code HOLIDAY
www.amino-vital.com

Amrap Nutrition
30% off on Amazon.com with code AMRAP300

Banza (delicious chickpea pasta, made in Detroit!)
Buy one, send one to a friend! Select items, through Monday 11/28
Deal page is here

Bodybuilding.com
BOGO on select items
www.bodybuilding.com

BSN–cyber MONDAY!
15% off all BSN Edge products
http://www.gobsn.com/offer/cybermonday.html

Buff Bake
15% off site-wide
extra savings with code cybermonday
www.buffbake.com

Detour Bar–MONDAY ONLY
entire site 30% off (no code required)
http://www.detourbar.com

Direct Eats–new! Valid Saturday and Sunday!
save 10% (off $75), 15% ($150), or 20% ($200) with code BLACKFRIDAY
15% off selected products from small businesses
www.directeats.com

EAS
25% off select items
www.eas.com

EBOOST
40% off with code THANKS40; free shipping over $40
https://www.eboost.com

Energy Bits.–now through Monday
20% off with code BAIN
$5 shipping to the U.S. for up to five bags of bits
http://www.energybits.com

Enjoy Life Foods (great for those with allergies!)–to 11/28!
10% off site-wide, 20% off orders $50+, 30% off orders $65+ code THANKFUL
http://shop.enjoylifefoods.com/

Hammer Nutrition
Free ultra gel sampler kit with order, use code WS16E
15% off fuels
20% off supplements and accessories
30% off clothing
50% off clearance
http://www.hammernutrition.com/
(Not an affiliate link, but if you want to tell them I sent you, I would LOVE that.)

ieatprotein
30% off with code EAT30
www.ieatprotein.com

Inside Tracker— valid through MONDAY!
Best deal of the year on the Ultimate plan!
https://www.insidetracker.com/customer/onboarding/choose-plan/
25% off any other Inside Tracker plan with code BLRF25OFF
https://www.insidetracker.com/customer/store/create-account

Kuli Kuli (moringa super foods)
15% off with code GRATITUDE (ends Sunday)
https://www.kulikulifoods.com/products

MeStrength
25% off with code VeryMerryMestrength (case sensitive)
www.mestrength.com

No Meat Athlete (with friends!)
The Plant-Based Fitness, Meal Plan, Cookbook, and Habit Change Bundle for $95 (individually priced items total $1,000+)
https://go.nomeatathlete.com/nma-bundle-2016

NuGo Nutrition
25% off all NuGo bars, free shipping on orders over $50 with code THX4U (through 11/28/16)
http://store.nugonutrition.com/products

Nuun
20% off + free shipping with code OPTOUTSIDE2016
https://nuunlife.com/shop

Quest
Through MONDAY!
$5 OFF any orders $45 – $69.99
$15 OFF any orders $70 – $94.99
$30 OFF any orders $95 – $250
(limit $250 per household)
https://store.questnutrition.com/

Run Gum
25% off through Monday
$5 off an order of $50+
$10 off an order of $100+
$20 off an order of $200+
free standard shipping
https://getrungum.com/collections/2016-black-friday-cyber-monday

Penzey’s Spices
Love Boxes discounted (through 11/27)
$4 off Black Pepper ½ cup (through 11/30)
Vanilla discounted
www.penzeys.com

Seven Seas Teas
40% off with code GREENFRIDAY7
http://www.lovesevenseas.com/

Thrive Market
25% off everything
www.thrivemarket.com

Ultima Replenisher
All flavors and sizes discounted in their store on Amazon.com

Vega
All products discounted; spend $100 and get a limited edition Mizu bottle plus free shipping (limited number available, ends 11/27)
https://myvega.com/products/categories/all

Vegan Proteins–valid through MONDAY!
50% off all Plant Fusion proteins, code CYBER50
Free variety pack with any Protes purchase (no code)
2 Free Badass Cookies when you buy a box
Buy a $100 gift card, get $15 gift card free (good until 12/31)
http://www.veganproteins.com 

Youth H2O
60% off Bloomin’ Apple flavor (discount reflected in pricing)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00QIVE4ES/?th=1

Yuve (vegan protein shakes)
25% off with code bf2016
https://www.getyuve.com/

GEAR

6 Pack Fitness
40% off site-wide, 20% off elite bags (no code needed)
20% off sauces and accessories (no code needed)
http://www.sixpackbags.com/

Believe training journals
30% off with code BELIEVERS
www.believeiam.com

FitBook
$49 BlackFriday Bundle
Spend $30+ get a free blender bottle with code BLACKFRIDAY
www.getfitbook.com

FitMark Bags
10% off $50+ with code BF10
15% off $100+ with code BF15
20% off $150+ with code BF20
25% off $200+ with code BF25
Plus a free gift with each order
http://fitmarkbags.com/

The Hollywood Trainer/Jeanette Jenkins
DVDs priced at 50% off!
http://www.thehollywoodtrainer.com/shop/

Kurgo (gear for your four-legged buddy!)
40% off everything with code CYBERSALE through 11/29
www.kurgo.com

Orange Mud–new codes valid through SUNDAY
15% off everything
Free headwrap with purchase
Free shipping (USA) or $10 shipping
Code: BKFDY
10% off $100+ with code SB10
15% off $150+ with code SB15
20% off $250+ with  code SB20
25% off $350+ with code SB25
30% off $500+ with code SB30
www.orangemud.com

Run Ink–through Sunday!
20% off the USA Race Chart with code INSTATURKEY
www.runink.net

SPIbelt–valid through MONDAY!
20% off with code HOLIDAY20
http://spibelt.com

The Color Run
50-60% off everything in the Color Run store
Free shipping for orders over $25
http://store.thecolorrun.com/

Trigger Point
30% off everything on the site with code NOEXCEPTIONS (through Monday, 11/28)
https://www.tptherapy.com/shop

TRX (suspension trainers and more!)
20% off all; 25% off $100+; 30% off $200+ with code BEST16
https://offers.trxtraining.com/black-friday-sale

TRAINING & COACHING & EDUCATION

Barre3–valid through 11/29
50% off barre3 online subscriptions and prop kits
http://shop.barre3.com/

Brett Hoebel
30% off the 20 Minute Body trilogy
http://20minutebody.com/discounts/fitfriend

IDEA 
40% off everything in the store with code FRIDAY40
www.ideafit.com

MobilityWOD
20% off Movement and Mobility 101 with code blackfriday2016
mobilitywod.myshopify.com/products/the-starrett-system-movement-mobility-101
Nathalia Melo-Wilson (trainer)
Monthly membership $5.99 with code melo1
Six month membership $29.94 with code melo2
Year membership $47.88 with code melo3
www.melomafia.com

Run Lean, Run Strong from RunningShoesGuru
save 65% until Monday
http://www.runningshoesguru.com/runlean-65off/

RunSmart Online–valid through 11/27
50% off downloads
Up to $200 off on run form analysis
Runsmartonline.com

Tracy Anderson Method
Spend $200, save 15%
Spend $500, save 20%
Buy 6 months streaming, get 1 free
www.tracyanderson.com

Vi by LifeBeam
Pre-order $199 today only (that’s $80 off)
https://www.getvi.com

Yoga Is… (online conference recordings)
25% off with code BLACKFRIDAY
https://by203.infusionsoft.com/app/orderForms/YOGA-IS-Online-Festival

YogaFit
15% off all 2017 yoga teacher trainings with code GIVETHANKS17
http://www.yogafit.com/

Xen Strength Yoga
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Disclosure: I received samples of Everlast Vegan Protein because I am a BibRave Pro and because I am a fitness professional member of IDEA. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro here. Read and write race reviews at BibRave.com!

As many of you know, I eat vegetarian and have been trying to reduce my egg and dairy intake. As part of my quest to keep a healthy, balanced diet I’ve been in search of a vegan protein powder. Since I drink Shakeology daily, I don’t need a protein powder with added nutrition–I’m just looking for the protein, thanks. I jumped at the chance to try Everlast Vegan Protein!

After I received the samples, I bought the full-sized bag, so you can enter to win those samples. (There is a great sale on right now–the regular price is $68.99, the sale price is $39.99–plus I saved 5% with code TRAINWITHBAIN and scored free shipping and a shaker cup.)

Everlast Vegan Protein
Everlast Vegan Protein

Everlast Vegan Protein currently comes in one flavor, “light vanilla flavor.” It has no dairy, no gluten, no sugar, and no soy. If you have severe allergies, you should know it is made or packaged in a facility that also handles products made with milk, eggs, wheat, and soy (and the package has the required FDA allergen warning on it).

Ingredients. Many protein powders either have a bunch of weird or unnecessary additives. Yes, protein powder is a highly processed food, but I still like to know what is in it and make the best possible choices.

Bag, back view
Bag, back view

  • Pea protein
  • Carrageenan
  • Sea Salt
  • Natural flavor
  • Rice protein
  • Hemp protein
  • Stevia glycoside

The protein blend includes yellow pea protein, rice protein, and hemp protein.  This mix avoids the most common allergens (e.g. soy) while delivering a protein that covers a complete BCAA profile. (Branched-Chain Amino Acids–BCAAs–are the building blocks of protein: leucine, isoleucine, and valine. You can read more about what BCAAs do on the Precision Nutrition site.)

What about the non-protein ingredients? Sea salt is exactly what you think it is. The term “natural flavor” is regulated by the FDA, and is used on the labels of many food products and supplements–and since this protein powder has a flavor, the label has to identify it. If you really want the technical definition, here it is, direct to you from the Code of Federal Regulations:

The term natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional.

Since this is a vegan protein, you know the flavor isn’t from meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, or dairy products. (I know, you’re thinking, “why not just say ‘vanilla’?” My guess? That’s complicated, as in there are separate sections of the Code of Federal Regulations with specifications for vanilla. Title 21, Part 169, Subpart B defines:  § 169.176 Concentrated vanilla extract; § 169.177 Vanilla flavoring; § 169.178 Concentrated vanilla flavoring; § 169.179 Vanilla powder; § 169.180 Vanilla-vanillin extract; § 169.181 Vanilla-vanillin flavoring; and § 169.182 Vanilla-vanillin powder. Vanilla is derived from a variety of orchids from the genus vanillia; different flowers grown in different parts of the world produce different flavors. If you want to keep the taste of your product consistent, ideally you’d use the exact same type of vanilla flavor…but vanilla is a picky little diva of a flower that can only be grown in certain places. Any change in the flowers could change the flavor, which means re-sourcing the vanilla. Re-sourcing the vanilla could mean changing from one type of regulated flavor to another–for example from extract to powder–which would require a change in the label, which would lead to a delay in production. In other words, major pain in the butt.)

That leaves carrageenan and stevia glycoside. The dairy industry has worked hard to demonize carrageenan through production of commercials about nut milks. (Backstory: the biggest dairy producers and processors convinced some legislators to introduce a bill that would limit use of the word “milk” to dairy products; they are unhappy that in the current nutritional climate, many people are turning to soy milk, almond milk, rice milk, and similar beverages. When this bill failed, they started to run commercial advertising to influence public opinion by providing just one tiny slice of information about non-dairy milks. Basically, sore losers.) Carrageenan is derived from red seaweed. The Irish began using it in food hundreds of years ago (if not earlier–there’s only so much history we can trace). The Food Babe points to it as one of the most evil things in food, but she relies on animal-only studies that studied poligeenan (which is a different substance) and studies that used huge amounts (more than you’d consume even if you ate all-processed, all the time). (You can read one simple counterpoint to the fear-mongering at the International Food Information Council site. Click the links, use Google Scholar and PubMed, and understand the science.) Carrageenan serves two functions in a protein powder. One, it preserves the nutritional value of the protein. Two, it allows the protein to suspend evenly in liquid, instead of clumping up and floating to the top or sinking to the bottom.

Finally, stevia glycoside. Steviol glycosides are the compounds in the Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni plant–at least ten of them–that make the plant sweet. Pure stevia actually has a bitter aftertaste, which is why commercial sweeteners containing stevia usually don’t contain much stevia–and why Truvia (which is like 95% erythritol, a sugar alcohol) is being sued for misleading consumers. The difference is important; stevia, which has been used for over 100 years as a sweetener, does not have an impact on blood sugar, while some sugar alcohols not only impact blood sugar but also affect gut bacteria and may cause intestinal upset in sensitive individuals.  You can read more than you ever wanted to know about stevia from the International Stevia Council. (Yes, it is their job to make stevia sound awesome. Feel free to cross reference with Google Scholar and Pub Med.) Oh, and the amount of stevia added is just enough to make Everlast Vegan Protein not-sour, not-salty. This isn’t a sugar bomb “tastes like a cake mix” product.

My kitchen is the laboratory: Touch Test. Okay, so this might not technically be a test, exactly, but in my experience the texture of the mix affects the final product. The protein powders my brother used in high school were gritty and felt like they contained bits of ground-up gravel in them. The resulting sludges had a sandy texture to them, and any un-mixed lumps brought me right back to falling off the swingset and doing a face plant in the sandbox. Yuck. Birds need to eat gravel and grit, but I surely don’t!

Thankfully, there is no sandy, gritty stuff in Everlast Vegan Protein powder. The dry texture is more like a weightier powdered sugar, or a very soft and creamy powdered makeup. While in the sealed bag, you can almost knead it like bread dough.

pint glass with full scoop of Everlast Vegan Protein
pint glass with full scoop of Everlast Vegan Protein (just pretend you can’t see parts of my kitchen, okay?)

My kitchen is the laboratory: Mix Test. The first test I perform on any drink or protein powder is a mix test: I take the full serving size, put it into a pint glass, and add either water (for fruity-flavored supplements) or skim milk (for protein powder), then stir with a spoon. I don’t always have a shaker cup with me, and sometimes you need to adjust serving sizes to get an optimal mix. Yes, I realized while I was stirring that it is a little ironic that my first test on a vegan protein powder is to mix it with dairy milk. Oops.

The majority of the protein powder mixed thoroughly and dissolved. In hindsight, the amount of space the protein powder took up in the glass means it is unlikely I got the recommended 8 to 12 ounces of liquid in there. Oops. There were a few globs of not-quite-dissolved powder; when I tasted them, they were smooth, like a thick pudding (not at all gritty like my brother’s high school sludges). The resulting protein drink was smooth and had a nice texture. To my surprise it was also very filling, even though a single serving is only 110 calories (plus the approximately 90 calories in the 8 ounces or so of skim milk I put in there).

The flavor was light, as described on the package. It didn’t scream VANILLA! like some vanilla-flavored things. Personally, I consider this a major win, as my search for a protein powder is in part so I can add it to recipes and shakes where I don’t want it to overpower the other ingredients.

One serving mixed with skim milk (opacity = evidence of complete mixing)
One serving mixed with skim milk (opacity = evidence of complete mixing)

My kitchen is the laboratory: Blender Test.  At IDEA World last year, I stopped by the Ninja Kitchen booth, had some delicious green juice, entered a twitter contest, and won a Ninja Ultima! The blender is now my go-to appliance (because it works like a ninja, and because it is so easy to clean) and I use it pretty much every day to make a breakfast smoothie using the single-serve Nutri Ninja cups. Since the mix test above convinced me that I needed more liquid for a full scoop of Everlast Vegan Protein, I made one of my usual recipes and added a half scoop (without changing anything else about the recipe). I was a little afraid that I should have added the liquid first–some of the powder hit the bottom of the cup, and I wasn’t sure whether the Ninja could get it fully mixed-in, given the softness of the product.

Fortunately the Ninja worked like a champ, and the Everlast Vegan Protein blended into the smoothie 100% (no unblended bits). The smoothie tasted pretty much like I expected it to taste, with a subtle hint of vanilla in there. I could definitely tell I had added more protein, as the smoothie had a little more weight to it, and I felt sated longer than I usually do after a smoothie.

The not-so-good. The only downside to Everlast Vegan Protein is the packaging. (I was going to add the flavor–there’s a thing called “flavor fatigue” if you always have the same thing–but the flavor is so light that you can add anything to it, or add it to anything, and come up with a million tasty flavors.) I like that the packaging is minimal, just a single, theoretically re-seal-able bag. I’m trying to cut down on how much trash I generate, and since I own plenty of portable containers and such there isn’t any reason why I should need individually-wrapped servings. I like that it’s not a giant plastic canister like most other brands of protein, as those take up way too much space in my kitchen and are usually about 25% larger than necessary.

I count the packaging as a downside, because the ziploc-style re-seal-able top is incompatible with the product. When I tried to re-seal the bag, the single set of grooves refused to mate and seal; both sides of the bag had the fine dust of Everlast Vegan Protein thoroughly filling in the groove. No matter how much I tried, I couldn’t get the bag to seal shut again. This led me to dump the bag into a Tupperware-type square container with a tight-fitting lid. Unfortunately, the fluffy texture of the powder meant that even though I tried to prevent any giant dust-poof (if you’ve ever poured flour into a storage jar, or tried to seal a flour bag shut, you’ve met the dust-poof), the product got all over my counter and myself. Oops. Now that it is in the container, and I’ve washed and dried the scoop (which I put into the container with the handle OUT of the product), I’m good to go.

WIN WIN WIN!

Since I went all-in and bought the two pound Everlast Vegan Protein bag, I don’t need the samples. Since I have a bit of a drinking vessel habit–seriously, I can’t resist a cute water bottle or shaker cup–I don’t need the shaker cup either. (Trust me, it pains me to give this one away, but I’m trying SO HARD not to turn into my packrat Nana.) This giveaway features TWO prizes! Prize #1: two samples of Everlast Vegan Protein. Prize #2: two samples of Everlast Vegan Protein plus an Everlast shaker cup.

Prizes!
Prizes!

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

P.S. remember there is a great sale on right now–the regular price is $68.99, the sale price is $39.99–plus I saved 5% with code TRAINWITHBAIN and scored free shipping and a shaker cup. (That code is good on anything on the Everlast Nutrition site, and does not expire.)

P.P.S. Want to see what the other BibRave Pros thought about Everlast Vegan Protein?