It’s All a Matter of Perception (Why ‘Vegan’ Still Trips People Up)

Plant-based food doesn’t have a taste problem, it has a perception problem, and the internet keeps proving it. A recent viral video shows a man raving about a burger, calling it “one of the best ever,” right up until he’s told it’s vegan. It wasn’t, it was beef the whole time, yet the flavour apparently changed instantly. Suddenly it “tastes like beans.” This is the plant-based paradox in a bun when people aren’t rejecting flavour, they’re rejecting an idea.

And this bias spills well beyond TikTok. Vegan entries have quietly won chilli cook-offs, burger challenges, and even pastry competitions, but only when judges didn’t know. In Sweden, a vegan pastry was winning a major contest until organisers literally stopped the event because the plant-based entry was outcompeting the traditional ones. It’s the culinary equivalent of flipping up the Monopoly board because Grandma is winning again. No wonder brands are ditching the “vegan” label entirely as consumers taste with their identities long before they taste with their mouths.

But what’s interesting is when people try plant-based food without the label, the resistance evaporates. Prejudice takes the day off. Suddenly flavour isn’t political, it’s just flavour. Marketing, tradition, and personal identity are still steering the ship, but the ship itself is moving. And for anyone interested in what eating animal-free looks like in real life rather than in comment-section hysteria, Challenge22 runs free, practical support at challenge22.com , no ideology, just real food and real humans navigating perception.

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