//...but it sounds very dismissive of people who either enjoy it now and again like I do,//
I'm not dismissive of them for what they eat, bob. I don't give a toss what they eat. I'm dismissive of them for seemingly wanting me to do the same (see Zacs' post). But I simply cannot fathom why they go to great lengths to make this stuff look and taste like meat. I perfectly understand people who don't want to eat meat. It's not a lifestyle I have any intention of undertaking or even trying but each to their own. But if you ran a campaign to persuade people to eat fewer vegetables, why would it help to produce a piece of lamb that looked at tasted like a carrot? It's simply irrational.
//Perhaps they have been meat-eaters in the past and want to have that experience again?//
Then they can buy a piece of meat, no?
//Would you rather have the real thing or a few tablets and a bit paste that gave you exactly the same nutritional benefits?//
The real thing. A strange question!