People left feeling sick after discovering how vegan meat is made

As the Thanksgiving holiday rolls around in the US and December 25 looms closer, people are thinking about the contents of their festive feasts.

Obviously, vegan, vegetarians and flexitarians aren't going to the butcher's to bag their ingredients for the big day.

But it doesn't mean you have to be doomed to eat a nut roast or just nibble on all the trimmings either - as you can opt for a meat-free alternative, if you can stomach how it's made.

A whopping 7.5 million 'Tofurky' roasts have been sold since they first hit the market in 1980 and the US-based firm have become a vegan household name.

Over the festive period, workers make, bake and package 6,000 roasts in every 10-hour shift at the Hood River factory in Oregon.

Touting itself as a 'savoury blend of wheat and tofu', these meat free alternatives are filled with a 'flavourful wild rice and bread crumb stuffing'.

But to make sure there is enough Tofurky to go around, this Christmas concoction has to be made on an industrial scale with huge quantities - and the process isn't exactly appetising.

YouTube/hereisoregon

A masa (dough) of tofu and meat is whipped up by four employees during each shift, before it is mixed with water, canola oil and savoury seasonings.

Meanwhile, the wild rice stuffing which sits in the centre of each Tofurky roast is being made - combining breadcrumbs, celery, onion, carrot, leek and other festive flavourings.

The plant-based ingredients for the meal's dry seasoning mix are then sorted, before the mixtures are then blended together.

YouTube/hereisoregon

This creates two savoury goops which are fed into a nested funnel within a funnel, that sends them into a tube within a tube. It's all very intricate, as you can imagine.

They are then cooked, refrigerated and quickly boxed up ready for shipment.

But before they leave the factory, they are bizarrely scanned via x-ray to ensure that nothing has infiltrated the unusual mixture.

A single Tofurky roast with gravy, which feeds about five, will set you back $13.50 (£10.77).

Take a look at the process here:

Seeing how it's made didn't exactly impress social media users, who aren't exactly rushing to buy a Tofurky for their upcoming dinners.

But it's still a much kinder alternative to what goes on in meat-processing facilities.

One said: "WTF. Come on! That's gross!"

Another wrote: "This video made sure that I will NEVER eat this stuff."

A third added: "That doesn't look fit for human consumption."

A fourth simply commented: "Ew."

And a fifth chimed in: "Wtf is Tofurky? I ain't eating it."

Tofurky anyone?

Topics: Vegan, Food And Drink, Social Media, Christmas, Vegetarian

Olivia Burke

Olivia is a journalist at LADbible Group with more than five years of experience and has worked for a number of top publishers, including News UK. She also enjoys writing food reviews (as well as the eating part). She is a stereotypical reality TV addict, but still finds time for a serious documentary.

@livburke_