Whey is the Way! (Protein powder redux)

With apologies to all you pasty-skinned, calcium-deficient vegans out there ("I keed, I keed!"):

Drops of nectar from the Vaisnava Body Building Group on Facebook.

Whey protein, made from cow's milk, is the best source of protein for the human body, according to present nutritional and sports science.

Whey protein powder (isolate and concentrate) is a byproduct of cheese production. Milk is separated into curds and whey using rennet. The whey is then dried under a low temperature and turned to a powder.

Ajita Krsna points out that the rennet used in commercial cheese production is commonly made by killing small calves, then grinding up their fourth stomach. Cheese made using this rennet is not considered offerable or consumable by devotees. Instead, those devotees who do use commercial cheeses look for ones made using "vegetarian rennet", typically chemical or microbial in origin.

There are no "vegetarian" whey powders, but what we're looking for here is a "kosher whey powder" (any Jewish body builders in the house?). According to kosher dietary laws meat and milk cannot be mixed, so kosher milk products are also "Vaisnava bonafide".

US Premium whey protein isolate turns out to fit the bill. It's available in Australia, free postage, and costs only $38/kg for an order of 4kg. That's very economical. At my local organics store whey protein isolate is $54/kg in the bulk bin, and GNC, etc. carry branded protein powders for $60+ for 750g.

Manigriva, from Melbourne, pointed out Nutiva Hemp Protein Powder.

That's one for all you vegans out there, and it's also got some serious counter-cultural cred (check out The Hemp Revolution on Google Video). It has 37% protein (compared to whey protein isolate's 93%), and the bioavailability of that protein is lower than that of whey, but it's hemp man! Green all the way through.

A number of people have asked me about the "Vedic Mass" protein powder that features as the picture for the Vaisnava Bodybuilding Group. No, I didn't photoshop it. It's real. I found it by googling "Vedic Bodybuilding" as an image search.

It's made by Vedic Biolabs, in Bangalore, India. They also make "Vedic Proteen", which is a protein powder with added Ayurvedic goodness (Brahmi, Ashwagandha and Shankapushpi), and "Vedic Fat CHQ" to control weight. There are no "get immediate results from your first set within 15 minutes of taking this" claims here, it's all-Ayurvedic rasa: "Vedic Mass Builder has to be consumed for a minimum period of 3 months to get the desired results. Results vary from person to person.".

OK...

At the other end of the spectrum, here's the profile picture for an Australian body building group on Facebook.

Now that's taking it a little too far...