Beyond Meat - a tasty compromise

My wife just bought some Beyond Meat shares, somewhat belatedly - although the shares have increased by a huge 780% since going public in May of this year, they just lost 12% since my wife bought in, on news that a second share offering was in the works. Typical! We're not too worried long-term, though, as the current love affair with plant-based foods, particularly the very "meaty" ones like Beyond Meat and Impossible Burgers, looks set to continue for a good while.
Now, we've been vegetarian for nearly 40 years, and so we've consumed a lot of burgers in that time. But I'm not convinced I like the ones that purport to taste, and even look, just like beef (which is Beyond Meat's philosophy) any more than the others. I'm not a purist who eschews anything that pretends to be meat completely, but I am just as happy with a black bean burger, or a cheaper basic burger like Yves or Presidents Choice. And I do wonder whether operations like Beyond Meat aren't sacrificing healthiness for mass marketing and the bottom line.
So, can a burger that processed really be healthy? Is it actually healthier than a beef burger? Beyond Meat's publicity insists it is, but the objective jury is still out.
Beyond Meat burgers are designed to look and taste just like meat, that's the point of it, and they are reeling in oodles of meat eaters who like the taste, but want to feel that they are pursuing a healthier option. As Beyond Meat's website explains, what it calls "animal-based meat" (and beef in particular) has been shown to be an unhealthy option, as well as environmentally unfriendly to boot. They argue that "plant-based meat" can only be an improvement, both in terms of health and the environment.

And that's probably true, but there is as yet little or no hard scientific data to prove that. With over 20 ingredients, including any number of flavour enhancers, acids and starches, Beyond Meat is definitely a highly-processed food - such as we are constantly enjoined to avoid - as well as being high in sodium and (non-animal, from coconut oil) saturated fats. It has much more sodium nd nearly three times as many total calories as an average veggie burger, and MANY times more fat. Indeed, it has more calories and sodium than some beef burgers, and as much fat. It is almost like they have gone out of way to make it as "sinful" as a beef burger.
Other nutritionists, though, argue that, regardless, it is still way safer and healthier than a "real meat" option, given the cancer and heart disease associations of processed meats, and the environmental benefits of pea protein isolate over beef farming are indisputable. It has 20g-22g of protein, putting it in very much the same protein league as beef, but with zero cholesterol, a good level of fibre, and the addition of most of a day's worth of Vitamin C.
Me, I will keep eating it, although not to the exclusion of other burgers. It's good, but not THAT good, and I don't eat burgers that often anyway. It may be less healthy than some other veggie burgers, but I don't have to eat healthy ALL the time, do I? However, I'm just waiting for the backlash, or the damning scientific study. Because it will surely come, and the panicky meat industry is probably working on it right now.