It does not matter if you get protein from meat or plants as long as the total of what you eat at one sitting is a "complete" protein. Meat is complete - you do not have to even think about it. A "complete" protein is a combination of amino acids? (is that correct). Beans and rice are a combination that add up to complete protein. So is milk or milk products and grains or pasta (thus macs and cheese!). Soy and legumes are complete (or near complete?). TVP is a soy product. I used to know all this stuff- am a bit fuzzy on it now. You also need a lot less protein than most people think. I aim for 18-20% of my backpack calories as protein. I think you only need about 14% if all the protein is complete. If you were to really study what is in a freeze dried meal that says it has meat, you may find that there is maybe a spoonful of dried meat chunks and a lot of TVP! The best protein source when backpacking is to fish.