Field Roast Smoked Apple & Sage Sausage: Nutrition & Labelgrade B (77/100)
B 77 / 100 — Seitan (vital wheat gluten) does the heavy lifting: 23g protein per link at 25g per 100g, with almost no saturated fat — a structural advantage plant sausages have over pork or beef. The whole-food ingredient list (real apples, potatoes, sage) is unusually clean for the category. The Labelgrade ceiling is sodium (560mg per link), which is typical for any sausage.
🛒 Buy on Amazon →The short answer
Field Roast Smoked Apple & Sage delivers 23 g of protein for 220 calories in one 92 g link (USDA FDC 2602023) — roughly 25 g of protein per 100 g, which is a meat-grade density that almost no other sausage in the case reaches. The trick is that this is a grain meat: the base is vital wheat gluten (seitan), nearly pure wheat protein, rather than the pea or soy protein most plant sausages lean on. Two numbers explain its B (77/100): protein density grades A- and saturated fat grades A+ at just 0.5 g per link, but sodium (560 mg) scores an F and single-handedly caps the grade. The flavor is built from things you can picture — unsulfured dried apples, Yukon Gold potatoes, rubbed sage, garlic — not a binder-and-isolate slurry. The one hard line: vital wheat gluten is the product, so this is emphatically not gluten-free.
Why the B
| Dimension | Grade | Score | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protein density | A- | 88 / 100 | 25 g per 100 g — seitan’s signature. Wheat gluten is the structural base, so the 23 g is the whole link, not a sprinkle of added isolate |
| Ingredient quality | B+ | 82 / 100 | 14 ingredients you can mostly name: gluten, safflower oil, real dried apples, potatoes, sage, garlic, natural smoke flavor — no methylcellulose or pea-isolate stack |
| Sugar load | A+ | 95 / 100 | 4 g total, 0 g added — the sweetness is dried apple and barley malt, which is why it tastes faintly of apple |
| Saturated fat load | A+ | 97 / 100 | 0.5 g per link. This is the plant-sausage trump card: pork or beef links carry 5-10x more, and seitan starts at near-zero |
| Sodium load | F | 35 / 100 | 560 mg per link (~609 mg per 100 g). The savory depth leans on salt plus yeast extract, and the Labelgrade ceiling lives right here |
| Fiber | F | 30 / 100 | 0 g per the USDA entry. Gluten is the protein left after wheat’s bran and starch are washed out, so no fiber survives |
The two F’s tell honest, opposite stories. Fiber is structural — washed wheat gluten simply has none, and no amount of dried apple in a 92 g link changes that. Sodium is the real, fixable knock: at 560 mg, two links at dinner is over 1,100 mg, so this is a “one link, plus a low-salt plate” food, not a free pass.
The grain-meat advantage
Most plant sausages start from a protein isolate — pea, soy, or a blend — and engineer texture back in with oils, starches, and methylcellulose. Field Roast goes the other way. Its base, vital wheat gluten, is already a stretchy, fibrous protein, so the link gets its snap from the protein itself, not from a gum. That’s why the panel reads short and recognizable — filtered water, vital wheat gluten, safflower oil, dried apples, potatoes, then seasonings — and why ingredient quality grades B+ instead of the B- territory isolate-based links tend to land in.
It also drives the macros: because the protein is the structure, density hits 25 g/100 g (higher than the pork it imitates) while saturated fat stays at 0.5 g, since there’s no animal fat in the build. Getting both “more protein” and “almost no saturated fat” from one swap is rare — the wheat-gluten base delivers them together.
Field Roast vs. Beyond, and vs. a real hot dog
This is the decision most shoppers are actually making — artisanal grain-meat link, engineered pea-protein link, or just buying franks. The verified numbers:
| Product | Protein | Calories | Sat fat | Sodium | Base |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Field Roast Smoked Apple & Sage (this) | 23 g (92 g) | 220 | 0.5 g | 560 mg | Vital wheat gluten (seitan) |
| Beyond Sausage Brat Original | 16 g (76 g) | 190 | 5 g | 500 mg | Pea protein |
| Applegate The Great Beef Hot Dog | 6 g (48 g) | 90 | 3 g | 280 mg | Grass-fed beef |
| Hebrew National Beef Frank | 5 g (45 g) | 100 | 3 g | 500 mg | Beef |
Field Roast wins decisively on protein (23 g vs. Beyond’s 16 g, and 3-4x the beef franks) and on saturated fat (0.5 g vs. Beyond’s 5 g and the franks’ 3 g). Where Beyond pushes back is mouthfeel: its coconut-and-sunflower-oil fat load (12 g, 5 g saturated) gives a juicier, more bratwurst-like bite, and — crucially — Beyond is gluten-free where Field Roast is the exact opposite. The beef franks win only on calories and sodium-per-link, and only because they’re smaller and carry far less protein. On a protein-per-saturated-gram basis, nothing in this table is close to the Field Roast link.
Whole-food anchor
One link’s 23 g of protein matches roughly 2.5-3 oz of cooked chicken breast (cooked breast runs ~31 g per 100 g) — a chicken-portion’s worth of protein with almost no saturated fat and zero cholesterol, in a grillable form. The trade-offs: 560 mg of sodium versus well under 100 mg for plain chicken, and slightly lower amino-acid completeness, since wheat-gluten protein is modestly lower-quality than animal protein on its own. On a mixed plate, that completeness gap largely closes.
Ingredients
Filtered water, vital wheat gluten, expeller pressed safflower oil, unsulfured dried apples, Yukon Gold potatoes, yeast extract (yeast, salt), onion powder, barley malt extract, garlic, spices, sea salt, yeast, rubbed sage, natural smoke flavor.
Read top-down, the story is clear: water and wheat gluten build the body and the protein; safflower oil carries the fat (and keeps saturated fat low); dried apples, barley malt, sage, garlic, and natural smoke flavor do the “apple & sage” seasoning; and sea salt plus yeast extract supply the savory punch — and the sodium that caps the grade. (Verbatim from the USDA Branded Foods entry, FDC 2602023.)
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Quick Facts
Per serving · 1 sausage (92 g)
0638031612178Full nutrition facts
| Nutrient | Per Serving (1 sausage (92 g)) |
|---|---|
| Calories | 220 |
| Protein | 23g |
| Total Fat | 8g |
| Saturated Fat | 0.497g |
| Trans Fat | 0g |
| Total Carbohydrates | 16g |
| Dietary Fiber | 0g |
| Total Sugars | 4g |
| Added Sugars | 0g |
| Sodium | 560mg |
| Cholesterol | 0mg |
| Calcium | 39.6mg |
| Iron | 1.6mg |
| Potassium | 210mg |
Scope: This page applies specifically to Field Roast Smoked Apple & Sage Plant-Based Sausages (12.95 oz (367 g) — 4 links) · UPC 0638031612178. Other sizes, flavors, or formulations may differ.
How this fits each diet
Each score is computed from the same USDA nutrition + ingredient data, against the published rules of each diet. They tell you "does this food fit this diet" — not whether the diet is right for you.
contains no listed animal products
contains no listed meat or fish
contains a gluten-bearing ingredient
Frequently Asked Questions
How much protein is in a Field Roast Smoked Apple & Sage sausage?
23 g of protein per link (92 g) (USDA FDC 2602023) — about 25 g per 100 g. That's higher than most pork or beef sausages and far higher than soy- or pea-based plant sausages, because the base is vital wheat gluten (seitan), which is nearly pure wheat protein.
Is this sausage actually high in protein, or is it like a hot dog?
Genuinely high. At 23 g per link it triples a Hebrew National beef frank (5 g) and beats a Beyond Sausage brat (16 g). The reason is the base: a hot dog is mostly fat and water with modest protein, while Field Roast's base is wheat gluten — a concentrated protein. One link is 46% of the FDA 50 g Daily Value, clearing the 'high in protein' bar easily.
Is it gluten-free? Is it soy-free?
It is the opposite of gluten-free. Vital wheat gluten is the #2 ingredient and the entire source of the protein, so anyone with celiac disease or a wheat allergy must avoid it. The flip side: there's no soy on the panel, which makes it a rare high-protein meat alternative for people who avoid soy but tolerate wheat.
Where does the 4 g of sugar come from?
Real fruit, not added sweetener. The panel lists unsulfured dried apples and barley malt extract — both contribute natural sugar, and the USDA entry shows 0 g added sugar. The 'apple & sage' name is literal: the sweetness comes from actual dried apples cooked into the link, not a glaze.
Why is the sodium so high if everything else scores well?
560 mg per link (~24% of the FDA 2,300 mg daily limit) is high, and it's the one dimension scored F. Salt does flavor and preservation work, and the yeast extract that builds the savory depth carries its own sodium. It's the only thing between this link and an A — and it's structural for sausage, not a Field Roast misstep.
How do you cook it, and what's the texture like?
It's fully cooked, so you're heating and browning, not cooking raw. The gluten gives it a firm, snappy bite — denser and chewier than a soft pork sausage — so it holds its shape on a grill or in a pan and won't fall apart. It also crumbles cleanly into pasta sauce, stuffing, or a breakfast scramble.
Why does a 'whole-food' sausage still get 0 g fiber?
Vital wheat gluten is extracted wheat protein with the bran and starch washed away, so it brings no fiber. The dried apples and Yukon Gold potatoes add real flavor and a little natural sugar, but in the small amounts used they don't move the fiber number — the USDA entry lists it at 0 g.