Consumers develop rich category associations with food including animal products from an early consumer. Category based associations and inferences guide their judgments about whether products qualify as food, as what kind of food they should be classified, and whether they are acceptable to eat at all. For the past 15 years, the dominant strategy has been to develop meat analogues that mimic the appearance, taste, and functionality of conventional meat. Yet, our research shows that such products and other meat alternatives are not typically categorized as meat by consumers. In focus groups in the Netherlands, consumers did not consider insects a food product making disgust a moot point. Consumers associated duckweed with a green salad like condiment instead of a protein source. Cultured meat was shown to be confusing as it misses the defining attribute of being derived from a professionally slaughtered animal. Beans and legumes were often classified as vegetables due supermarket placement while nuts were considered snacks for the same reason. These entrenched category inferences appear to be a major barrier in positioning meat alternatives as equivalent to meat. Our findings suggest that a more promising pathway lies in developing novel meals and recipes rather than narrowly focusing on replacing meat.