Garden Of Life Sport Vegan Protein Powderpros & Cons
Pros
Cons
Should You Buy Garden Of Life
After a ton of glowing reviews, detailed benefits, and some personal experience with post-workout drinks, it’s safe to say that Garden of Life Protein Powder may work as a recovery drink if youre vegan.
As a vegan though, I find it quite difficult to support the brand that makes it. I understand that its all business, but personally, Id rather back up a brand that makes non-GMO, fully plant-based protein.
We Want The Best When It Comes To Our Food Why Would We Want Anything Different For Our Vitamins And Supplements
We are fanatical about food. Weâre different that way. Whether weâre making a vitamin, or a probiotic, or a protein powder, we always start with real foods and these provide our formulas the power to be their best. Weâre different that way, too. The synthetically created, chemical âbreakthroughsâ from huge commercial laboratories around the world are not for us.
As fanatical as we are over what goes into our products, we are even more obsessed about the things we keep out of them. We hate those synthetic chemicals that most companies use to make their products. This stuff makes machines work faster, and helps factories churn out super-sized containers at higher âefficiency.â Weâre uncompromising about your health. Slow it down, make it by hand, grow it in rich soil with enough sun, air, water and time for it to be its best. Harvest it when ready. Treat it with care. Turn it into a power-packed nutritious food supplement. Thatâs what we are about.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease
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Why Raw Organic Protein
Unlock the nutritive power of living grains and seeds with creamy and delicious Garden of Life Raw Organic Protein powder. It contains Raw Food-Created fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K and supports digestive health and function with live probiotics and protein-digesting enzymes. Raw matters because heat can denature proteins, reducing their availability to your body. With 22g of muscle-building complete protein, this vegan protein powder is Certified Organic and Non-GMO Project Verified with no added fillers or carriers.
How To Choose The Best Vegan Protein Powder
There are several factors to consider when picking a vegan protein powder.
If you have any food allergies, restrictions, or intolerances, check for these ingredients on the label and consider opting for products that are certified vegan or allergen-free.
Additionally, be sure to check the ingredients list carefully. You may want to steer clear of products that contain high amounts of added sugars, artificial sweeteners, flavors, fillers, and preservatives.
Ideally, you should also look for products that have undergone third-party testing from organizations like NSF or Informed-Choice, which can help ensure the quality, purity, and strength of supplements.
Finally, although protein powder is generally considered safe for most people, consider consulting a healthcare professional before adding new supplements to your routine if you have any underlying health conditions.
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Vegan Protein & Powders
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Replenish your body with clean, organic vegan protein powder. Our vegan protein is sourced from living grains, seeds and raw non-GMO Certified plant proteins, all packed with sumptuous taste. That delicious taste means that it can be used in meals, shakes and in any number of healthy snacks and goodies. And because our vegan protein powder is gently produced at low temperatures without any added fillers, we preserve the plant nutrients, making each serving an excellent source of essential amino acids and vitamins.
Organic Plant Protein Benefits
- Supports overall health, since proteins are important parts of every bodily cell build and repair tissues make enzymes, hormones and other body chemicals and are essential building blocks of bones, muscles, cartilage, skin and blood
- Plus, Organic Plant Protein a perfect choice for breakfast or a small meal or snack to keep you satisfiedand its great for people who are on the go, watching their weight, or are active with exercise and fitness
- Healthy bodily muscles and muscle repair
- Healthy digestion
Organic Plant Proteina unique blend of seven grain-free organic plant proteinsall Certified USDA Organic and Non-GMO Project Verified.
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Garden Of Life Organic Plant Protein Powder
- Grain free organic plant protein
- Contains Garden of Life’s RAW probiotic and enzyme blends
- 15 grams of protein per serving
- No gritty texture
Contains:Protein Grams per Serving:Product Warning:Product Form:Primary dietary ingredient:Protein type:Primary dietary ingredient amount per serving:Net weight:OriginHealthcare Disclaimer
The above item details were provided by the Target Plus Partner. Target does not represent or warrant that this information is accurate or complete. On occasion, manufacturers may modify their items and update their labels.
We recommend that you do not rely solely on the information presented. If you have a specific question about this item, you may consult the item’s label, contact the manufacturer directly or call Target Guest Services at 1-800-591-3869.
Hidden Sugar In Garden Of Life Raw Protein
I was surprised to see that two of Garden of Lifes unflavored protein powder products contain 6 grams of sugar. Check it out
Garden of Life Raw Meal
Garden of Life Raw Protein and Greens
If youre buying an unflavored protein powder, added sugar is probably the last ingredient you want in it. And organic cane sugar is no better than any other sugar source.
The chemical composition is exactly the same your body will break the sugar down into glucose and fructose in the digestive tract and it will have the exact same negative effects on your metabolism.
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Garden Of Life Raw Protein Chocolate Review
Because I am picky about my chocolate-flavored vegan protein powders, I naturally embraced Garden of Life Raw Protein Chocolate with the mindset of a food critic. The experience and outcome was overall pleasing This flavor reminded me of chocolate Ovaltine, in that it had a rich, milk chocolate taste that was quite delightful.
Although great on its own with just almond milk, this flavor is also a nice addition to oats, unique recipes, and decadent smoothies Staying consistent with the other flavors top-of-class reputation, Garden of Life Raw Protein Chocolate is one of the best of its kind.
Flavor Review Rating 5 out of 5
Raw Organic Meal Shake & Meal Replacement
Raw Organic Meal is a delicious organic MEAL-ON-THE-GO packed with incredible nutrition to help you satisfy hunger, manage weight and feel great! Raw Organic Meal uniquely combines the goodness of multiple Garden of Life products in one complete raw organic meal replacement. Basically, it has the nutrition of seven products in one container! Raw Organic Meal delivers 20 grams of clean protein per scoop from 13 raw sprouted ingredients, along with greens, healthy fat, 7g of Organic Fiber, probiotics, enzymes, plus 21 vitamins and minerals.
Why RAW Organic Meal
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Garden Of Life Recall And Protein Powder Controversy
Garden of Life was in hot water a few years ago when 33 people got Salmonella poisoning from their Raw Meal Organic Shake & Meal Replacement powdered mixes. The victims ranged in age from 1 year to 84 years old.
Ive had Salmonella and it was quite possibly the sickest Ive ever felt in my life wouldnt wish it on anyone. Thankfully, none of the 33 people from the Garden of Life recall died.
To Ensure Our Products Are100% Safe We Follow These Three Steps:
TRUSTED SUPPLIERS
To ensure we are using the highest quality ingredients possible we only work with suppliers, farmers and growers that we know and trust.
All of our suppliers meet strict EU compliance and quality control standards, and grow according to our VGANIC brand promise, so we can guarantee that no corners are being cut when growing our ingredients.
TESTING AT SOURCE
All of the ingredients we use in our products are tested at the source for heavy metals and other contaminants. This way we can guarantee that they are safe before they even come into our manufacturing facility.
BATCH TESTING
All of our products are third party tested for heavy metals and other contaminants. To see our latest lab results click the button above to download the report.
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Most Garden Of Life Protein Powders Have Natural Flavors
Heres what David Andrews, Senior Scientist at the Environmental Working Group has to say about natural flavors:
Natural and artificial flavors really arent that different. And those natural flavors can actually contain synthetic chemicals! Youre right to be skeptical of the word natural its often thrown around loosely.
Vandana Sheth, spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, says these flavors may induce food cravings in some people too.
I emailed Garden of Life and asked, What ingredients, specifically, do your natural flavors contain?
Heres what they said:
In the Organic Plant Protein and RAW Organic Meal there will be ingredients that says its a flavor, like Organic Vanilla Flavor, which means that the ingredients is not strictly a vanilla bean that was added to the product but an extract form. This just means its more concentrated so less of the ingredient can be used without altering the nutrients that are in the product. In other flavors youll see a combination of both like the Chocolate Cacao flavor of the RAW Organic Meal. This one will have RAW Organic Cacao which is where chocolate comes from with Organic Chocolate Flavors just to enhance the cholate taste. If you were to just have the cacao then the product will most likely not taste like what most will expect from a chocolate flavored product.
Now, Im not saying Garden of Lifes flavors contain other shady ingredients like most companies add, especially since theyre organic.
Raw Organic Meal Shake & Meal Replacement Benefits
- Convenient organic, Raw shake and meal replacement
- Boosts energy and builds lean muscle
- Helps you stay full and can help support a healthy weight
- 1.5 Billion live probiotics plus enzymes to support digestive health
Raw Organic Meala yummy tasting organic meal-on-the-go packed with incredible nutrition to help you satisfy hunger, manage weight and feel great!
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Price Review: How Much Does Garden Of Life Raw Protein Cost
Because the price of Garden of Life Raw Organic Protein varies based on the seller and market demands , I am unable to list a specific price tag. But what I can do is give you a value rating of the cost of Garden of Life Raw Protein given the products quality, volume, and comparability to similar vegan protein powders on the market.
On the complete spectrum of plant-based protein powders, Garden of Life Raw Organic Protein Plant Formula is about average in price. You can typically find a 20-ounce tub of Garden of Life Raw Protein priced just over $30. And given the fact that its one of the highest quality raw vegan protein powders with a 5-star flavor spectrum that comes in four options, I find Garden of Life Raw Protein is a solid value thats worth the price. Among all the different Garden of Life protein powder reviews Ive done, this one is my favorite.
Price Review Rating: 4 out of 5
Garden Of Life Raw Protein Vanilla Review
If youre a fan of vanilla-flavored vegan protein powders, then you have to try Garden of Life Raw Protein Vanilla. This is one of the most delicious, natural-tasting vanilla protein powders Ive ever had. In addition to having a distinct vanilla bean flavor, it also had nostalgic tastes of cashews and Nilla wafers.
The beauty of Garden of Life Raw Protein Vanilla is that it can be added to a number of applications beyond smoothies. Ive tried it in oats and mixed it into the milk of my cereal. Its mildly sweet and has no stevia aftertaste like other vanilla-flavored options out there. Very pleased in reviewing this product, I put this choice atop my list of recommendable products.
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Garden Of Life Nestle Acquisition
In December 2017, GOLs parent company Atrium was acquired by Big Food giant Nestle for $2.3 billion.
Despite Garden of Lifes CEO Brain May assuring customers there would be no plans to change anything, many consumers were concerned based on Nestles track record of selling junk food and fighting to thwart GMO labeling efforts.
When small companies get bought by big companies, they generally do everything possible to decrease costs, and the first thing they look at is, How can we reduce the costs of our ingredients. This often leads to more ingredient sourcing from questionable sources overseas. Not saying Garden of Life is guilty of this, but its worth asking them where they source their ingredients from and seeing if you get a straight answer.
Garden Of Life Raw Protein Unflavored Review
Starting with flavor that has no flavor, Garden of Life Raw Protein Unflavored is a winning option in the category of transparent, natural-tasting, unflavored vegan protein powders. Its not sweet, nor is there much taste to speak of. But its very smooth and virtually undetectable when added to a smoothie or incorporated into a recipe. Its also one of the few vegan protein powders without stevia as a form of sweetner.
Also, if youre looking for a quality vegan protein powder thats low on the sweet scale, then this is a good option worth trying. Like Garden of Life Raw Fit protein powder that has metabolism-boosting ingredients, its nutritionally dense, low in calories, and isnt sweet
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Garden Of Life Raw Protein Vanilla Chai Review
As a nice twist to an already awesome flavor, Garden of Life Raw Protein Vanilla Chai is a superb choice if you want something layered with a little more complexity. Garden of Life did us chai-lovers a solid with this product, as the taste is phenomenal. Its still moderately sweet with a great balance of chai spice and vanilla bean, making it a delicious combination for the right application.
Garden of Life Raw Protein Vanilla Chai is certainly not as transparent and universally applicable as some of the other options, so make sure you really like the chai before you buy. But if you do, youre in for a treat. This product gives you the subtle notes of cardamom, cinnamon, and ginger common in good chai spice.
Taste Texture & Flavor Choices
While ultimately the ingredients, nutritional facts, and performance should be of the utmost importance while selecting a protein powder let’s be real, people want good taste, a good texture, and some flavor choices. What’s the point of having a great protein powder if it’s too disgusting to choke down, right?
This category is going to come down to a draw. Both Garden of Life and Orgain taste good on their own, and mix well into shakes, almond milk, or your beverage of choice.
As far as texture, some people find plant based protein powders to be a bit more grainy or gritty, however both these proteins mix fairly easily and have a good texture. Those who aren’t huge fans of protein or who have an issue with texture may choose to mix their protein powder in a smoothie as opposed to just water.
Garden of Life Raw Organic Protein has a slight edge in this category due to a couple additional flavor choices, but ultimately we’re going to call this category a draw as Orgain may be a slight bit smoother.
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Garden Of Life Protein Powder Reviews Summed Up
The one Garden of Life product I really like and recommend is Organic Plant Protein . Its a solid product with all organic, real food ingredients and contains probiotics. Here are the ingredients and nutrition facts:
Ive used Garden of Lifes Raw Fit protein in the past but Ive since phased out all products with flavors.
Unfortunately, all Garden of Life protein powders other than Unflavored Organic Plant Protein contain flavors, gums, and/or sugars.
Long story short, I like their Unflavored products with no sugar added and their commitment to organic, real food ingredients but cant give their flavored ones my stamp of approval.
The 12 Best Vegan Protein Powders
Protein powders can be an easy way to increase your intake of protein.
They can be especially useful for athletes, as well as those who have difficulty meeting their protein needs from food sources alone.
However, many protein powders on the market contain animal products, such as whey protein, which can make it challenging for vegans to find suitable plant-based protein supplements.
The products featured in this article were selected based on the following criteria:
- ingredient quality
- a lack of additives, fillers, preservatives, and artificial flavors
- the use of third-party testing
- adherence to manufacturing quality standards
Here are 12 of the best vegan protein powders.
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