
Update on Soylent Bar - misframer
http://blog.soylent.com/post/151720602057/update-on-soylent-bar
======
misiti3780
I'm probably going to get downvoted for this ... but honestly why do people
want to eat Soylent? One of the great joys of life is food, Soylent taste like
shit, eating it every day is boring, and no one knows the long term affects of
eating it for long periods of time.

I'm a big fan-boy of a lot of stuff SV produces, Soylent does not impress me.

~~~
elliottkember
As with most Soylent detractors, you're assuming people are eating this every
day, or for every meal. In reality, it's great as a once-in-a-while thing. I
bought some from a friend, and it was perfect for when I was hungry but
running late for something. I had maybe 3 meals a week like this. Any time I
told a friend I had some soylent, I got the exact same response you just gave.

~~~
jclos
But why not go for a protein bar then? Quest bars for instance are delicious
(I'd even prefer them to a candy bar), and pack a far more interesting macro
profile than the Soylent ones.

~~~
ravenstine
As much as I too love Quest bars(the cookie dough one is insanely good), I'm
not so sure I agree on the nutrient content:

[http://files.soylent.com/pdf/bar-nutrition-facts-
en.pdf](http://files.soylent.com/pdf/bar-nutrition-facts-en.pdf)
[http://www.questnutrition.com/protein-bars/choc-chip-
cookie-...](http://www.questnutrition.com/protein-bars/choc-chip-cookie-dough-
box-of-12/)

Granted, they are trying to do different things; Soylent tastes like crap but
has a lot of nutrients(supposedly a "complete" meal), whereas Quest is higher
in protein and lower in sugar while tasting terrific.

Personally, I would still choose Quest over Soylent because I suspect that the
idea that we need a constant intake of a wide variety of nutrients isn't
really true. I'm not denying that we definitely need vitamins and minerals,
but experience of going months eating very few vegetables(and almost entirely
meat and cheese) has caused no noticeable health effects in me besides weight
loss. We're made to think that we've got to eat a ton of vegetables and even
take supplements, which I think might be more clever marketing than anything
else.

~~~
jclos
But the micronutrient selection is only relevant if you only consume Soylent,
and most people here seem to be saying that they only consume some Soylent
products in replacement of a couple of meals/when they don't have time. So if
the rest of your meals are normal meals you will have filled your
micronutrients requirements already. Soylent is only beneficial then over a
protein bar if you plan to eat garbage the rest of the day too, but then if
you do the macronutrient profile of Soylent becomes pointless, because the
garbage you are going to eat later on is probably going to be carbs and fat
bombs (as garbage food usually is).

Therefore I don't really see the place that Soylent is trying to occupy and I
can't help but dismiss it as another nutritional fad.

------
kaishiro
It's tangential to the contents of the post, but as a _lover_ of good food (I
consider it my one real vice), I've always liked the idea of Soylent. A vast
majority of the time I just need something to fill me up. And it's a neat idea
to know you're getting everything you need from a single foodstuff (a la the
Matrix's gruel). I feel like, if anything, it may make the times you sit down
to a nice meal that much more enjoyable.

~~~
CivilianZero
As someone who has, in the past, lived on Soylent for months at a time when it
was most convenient, I can vouch for your feeling.

Every "normal" meal I had while living off Soylent tasted amazing and in
between great tasting meals I didn't have to stress about food if I didn't
want to.

To me, Soylent is gaining control over a thing that gives me great anxiety,
that thing being food. And having that control allows me to put even more
effort into cooking great meals when I want to.

~~~
kaishiro
Man, you nailed what I was trying to say. I never would have described it as
anxiety - because off the cuff it actually sounds pretty silly to be anxious
about food - but that is absolutely what it is.

------
overcast
Ever since its first very first release, anytime I've read about Soylent,
there is always some type of gastrointestinal response associated with it.
What's the deal with their formulas?

I've used other Soylent type products, and researched a ton more, and I never
get the impression that they have similar issues.

~~~
jaggederest
The honest answer is probably that most people are not used to having
substantial amounts of fiber in their diet, and being in the form of a liquid
makes it much more noticeable if you do have any issues.

The basic issue is that, while you may have gas as a result of eating a
burrito, it's spread out over a day. With Soylent or any liquid nutrition
really, it hits you over 1-4 hours. Ditto any other sort of gastrointestinal
upset - what would be subclinical with solid food and a day or two long
timeframe becomes an immediate crisis where you'd better find a restroom in
the next 10 minutes.

~~~
overcast
So why aren't the competing products I've tried / researched, not filled with
so many of the common complaints that Soylent has? For example the one I use
is entirely flax/hemp/sesame/rice, that's about as fibrous as they get.

~~~
frostirosti
This sounds very anecdotal -- can you direct me to some of the products you've
researched? Maybe we can do a side by side comparison of ingredients

~~~
overcast
The one I'm currently using.
[http://www.spacenutrientsstation.com](http://www.spacenutrientsstation.com)

------
burger_moon
Looks like they've been having additional issues with QC recently.
[http://blog.soylent.com/post/149763512312/update-on-
coffiest...](http://blog.soylent.com/post/149763512312/update-on-coffiest-and-
powder)

------
colept
This is the response I have been waiting for - this kind of decisive action is
a step in the right direction.

The timing however is not. This is not a preventative measure, it's reactive.
Would Soylent have taken the same action if they had not been put on blast on
Reddit and other sites? If not for the bad publicity I don't think they would
have done anything at all.

Until they are ensuring the quality of their product from batch to batch I'm
out. That means properly mixed bars, testing each batch to ensure the 100%
nutritional values they claim.

------
SpikeDad
Guess they recycled this from the emails they sent out about Soylent causing
intestinal problems. Can't believe I backed them originally.

------
jtchang
Solid response much like the one with Tynenol:

[http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/fall02/susi/tylenol.htm](http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/fall02/susi/tylenol.htm)

~~~
joering2
Interesting read, you learn something new every day...

I like the part about $2.50 off.

 _Gee this product killed people but its on sale now with $2.50 off... oh well
I 'll take a chance!_

~~~
jedmeyers
It was not Tylenol that killed people. Someone put cyanide capsules inside
Tylenol bottles. I am saying "someone" because as far as I know they never
found the person who did this.

~~~
joering2
They did.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Tylenol_murders](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Tylenol_murders)

~~~
henriquemaia
From the article introduction:

> No suspect was ever charged or convicted of the poisonings.

------
brandonmp
I've been a soylent customer for 2 years or so, and have always found the
flavor to be alright.

The latest formulation, 1.6,changes this. It's far and away the best flavor
yet. Very different, and very good. The only formulation so far for which my
mouth waters when I'm hungry.

------
safeandsound
I don't like spending time on cooking and I hate when my house smells like
food from cooking. I also don't like spending money on eating out that doesn't
taste extremely good. Soylent tastes good enough, healthy enough, and cheap
enough for me.

------
bertiewhykovich
The Platonic form of "too little, too late."

------
tedmiston
The title "Update on Soylent Bar" is pretty vague, so here's the gist:

> It has recently come to our attention that a small number of our customers
> have experienced gastrointestinal issues after consuming Soylent Bars. As a
> precautionary measure, we are _halting all Soylent Bar purchases and
> shipments_ and are advising our customers to discard any remaining bars in
> their possession.

> After hearing from our customers, we immediately began investigating the
> cause of the issue and whether it was linked to a problem with the Bars. _So
> far we have not yet identified one..._

> We will be reaching out via e-mail to all Bar customers to offer a full
> refund.

Wow.

I have a box of Soylent Bars from a few weeks ago I've been eating on
occasion. I haven't had any issues, and they seem fine to me.

Kudos to the Soylent team for covering the issue so quickly, especially after
the incident last month [1] where Coffiest wasn't meeting its prescribed
nutritional content. It seems like they're struggling with production quality
and consistency at scale.

(That said, I am a happy Soylent customer.)

[1]: [http://blog.soylent.com/post/149763512312/update-on-
coffiest...](http://blog.soylent.com/post/149763512312/update-on-coffiest-and-
powder)

~~~
themodelplumber
Maybe they are fine. I saw people online raving about Quest bars, so I bought
five different flavors to try. Result: Gastrointestinal issues I haven't
experienced with other protein bars. And I didn't even like the taste.

Even with that experience in mind, I'd probably try a Soylent Bar. Everybody's
different.

~~~
perardi
It's probably one of the sugar alcohols, which tend to draw water into the
bowels.

As for anecdotes: Quest bars usually don't upset my system, but other protein
bars (MetRX protein bar, that was a memorable time…) and a lot of "diet"
foods, like Weight Watchers desserts, cause, well, lower GI upset.

~~~
jschwartzi
A lot of "diet" bars and sugar-free protein mixes are sweetened with sugar
alcohols like Xylitol or Sorbitol. Your upper GI tract can't actually digest
these sugars, but there's plenty of bacteria in your lower GI tract which
digest them readily and produce a large quantity of gas.

Sugar free gum has the same effect for the same reason, at least if you chew
enough of it.

------
logicallee
Sorry - I'm going to say it. These guys need to change their name already.
It's just too much. (their name is derived from a dystopian film called
Soylent Green, which I won't give away and other replies shouldn't either.
It's really really famous.) I thought it was bad enough when everything was
going dandy but when we read about this kind of PR / damage control, it's just
too much.

They have a choice about it. This is a conscious joke on their part. They need
to take the next step, please.

I got downvoted but I'm going to keep this (it's quickly heading to -4). Go
watch the film, in the canon of filmmaking, and then come back and tell me I'm
wrong.

~~~
elmin
You're wrong because we all get the joke, and are over it. It's a very
conscious branding choice to label themselves as counterculture and edgy. It
won't appeal to everyone, but it clearly is a conscious marketing choice, and
you'd have a hard time saying their marketing isn't going well.

I think your time would be better spent telling MetRx or Ensure to change
their names, considering they are brands which are not very successful at
capturing the market Soylent is dominating (the bottled-nutrition-by-choice
market).

As far as I can tell their only issue is quality control and customer
communication, changing their name wouldn't fix either.

~~~
logicallee
I guess you would have the same opinion about "Schiit audio" (a brand to
fleece audiophiles, and which does very well.) their site[1] reads "Yes, that
is our name. Shih-tah. It's a proud German name, host to a long line of audio
engineers who slaved away in crumbling Teutonic fortresses as lightning lashed
the dark lands outside, working to perfect the best amplification devices in
the world...

Or, well, no. Yep, Schiit is our name, and it's pronounced, well, like "hey
man, that's some really good Schiit!" And now that we have your attention..."

Sorry. I believe "nomen est omen" and I personally believe that until they
update their name they have it baked into their DNA to lie to, to mislead, and
to create an awful dystopia. It is quite literally on the label.

Compare the origin of the term Ycombinator: [2]

We might disagree on this but I am going to maintain that when your name
clearly embodies some ideal, however vaguely, it affects things.

Why are there no restaurants called Makesyapuke Diner? (or anything like it.)

They need to align their name with their positive vision. They've outgrown the
joke.

[1] [http://schiit.com](http://schiit.com)

[2] [http://stackoverflow.com/questions/93526/what-is-a-y-
combina...](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/93526/what-is-a-y-combinator)

~~~
geoelectric
If their mission is to fleece audiophiles they should shoot higher. I mostly
know of them for their rather inexpensive headphone amps and DACs.

