Just Egg

Just Egg is a vegan egg replacer for cooking and baking, made by Just, Inc. and known for its incredibly realistic texture. In many ways, Just Egg cooks just like a real egg.

Just Inc., formerly known as Hampton Creek Foods, seems to be a constant magnet for controversy.

Some claims against the company, such as food safety concerns which were proven to have stemmed directly and indirectly from the egg industry (who stands to gain the most from the possible downfall of the plant-based brand), have since been discovered to be unsubstantiated and false.

Other claims, such as ones from former employees of an uncomfortable and unsafe working environment, have not been proven true or false and as such, are still suspicious.

Other claims are indisputably true, such as the controversy surrounding then Hampton Creek electing to test its newly discovered mung bean protein isolate on animals in order to gain GRAS (Generally Regarded As Safe) status from the FDA. Although the FDA doesn’t explicitly require testing on animals to receive the status, it will not give its seal of approval without it. Operating without GRAS status would at best severely diminish a vegan company’s ability to grow and do good in the world, and would at worst completely shut the company down by possibly requiring stores to pull products from shelves, which is exactly what the meat, dairy, and egg industries want.

The company is now working on their most ambitious project yet: lab-grown “clean meat” made from cultured animal cells. To do this, they first need to harvest cells from real animals, which has stirred up more controversy.

(Vegan Rabbit recommends supporting brands that have not elected to test on animals over supporting brands that have.)