[Home | About Plevas | Facts | Feedback | Health | Location | Ordering | Recipes ]
Frequently Asked Questions
Question: What is Plevalean?Answer: Plevalean is the brainchild of Cedar, Michigan native Ray Pleva who created the mixture of lean ground beef, cherries and cherry concentrate. The cherry mixture reduces the fat in the burger and significantly extends the shelf life of the meat.
Question: Why cherries in hamburger?
Answer: The history of Plevalean really began when Ray and Marge Pleva’s daughter Cindy was chosen as the National Cherry Queen. She asked her dad, who had grown up on the Pleva family cherry farm, to come up with a product at his butcher shop that could help promote the slumping cherry industry. Ray’s first creation was Cherry Pecan sausage. Next came Plevalean and the rest is history.
Question: How does a Plevalean burger stack up to other burgers?
Answer: Most people who taste a Plevalean burger will tell you it tastes better than plain ground meat. It’s juicy, it’s lean and, should there be a leftover one to warm up, there’s no “warmed up” taste like there is with plain ground meat. Plus the numbers don’t lie. A 4 oz. cooked weight Plevalean burger has 170 calories. A regular ground beef burger has 293. That’s a significant difference in a typical 2,000 calorie a day diet.
Question: What’s new with Ray Pleva Products?
Answer: The creation of a new cherry powder that can be blended into your meat, poultry and non-meat product food ingredient formulas. After you’ve tried it, we’re sure you’ll agree that the development of cherry powder is the new wave of the food industry.
Question: What did Oprah tell Cindy Pleva at the end of her and Ray’s appearance on her show?
Answer: At the end of the show, Oprah turned to Cindy and said, “Thank you Miss Cherry Queen. Who knew that when they put that crown on your head …” At this point Oprah just shook her head and the show closed. The Oprah show that Ray and Cindy appeared on was seen by people in 100 different countries.
Fun Facts about Ray Pleva
and his cherry enhanced meat products
- Ray Pleva grew up involved with two family businesses: cherry farming and sausage making at the family market.
- Ray’s Cherry Pecan Pork Sausage won Michigan’s New Product of the Year Award in 1989. The product was developed at the urging of his daughter Cindy, the 1987 National Cherry Queen.
- Plevalean won the Michigan New Product of the Year Award in 1993. Awards were based on engineering, ingenuity of concept and total contribution to the economy of Michigan. Plevalean was patented in 1995.
- Ray’s innovative products led Michigan to amend its meat laws.
- Ray continues to develop new cherry products. His latest innovation is line of nutraceutical lotions and capsules marketed by his new company Cerise Nutraceuticals.
Ray Pleva appeared with his Plevalean burgers on Tim Allen’s Home Improvement on Tuesday, February 18, 1997 on ABC. While in California for the taping, Ray presented a hand-painted plaque to Tim Allen which characterizes Plevalean as "Miss Plevalean" with ten tuxedo-dressed, hat-tipping cherry sausages dancing in the background. The sausages represent ten of the many varieties of cherry-enhanced meat products that Ray has developed. Tim Allen had the plaque hung permanently on the wall of the Tool Time set. The picture was presented on behalf of the citizens of Michigan, Governor John Engler, Michigan Department of Agriculture, Michigan State University, the cherry, beef and pork industries and Michigan schools.
- Plevalean creator Ray Pleva and his cherry burger have been featured on Oprah (in 1994) and on Extra twice. He’s also appeared on CNN, been mentioned by Jay Leno and featured on ABC, NBC, CBS and PBS. A total of 51 TV crews visited his Cedar, Michigan butcher shop.
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture thought Plevalean was so good they recommended it as part of their National School Lunch Program. Currently, Cherry Burgers are on the school lunch menus in 18 states.
| Ray Pleva's Products,
Inc. 9101 South Lake Shore Drive Cedar, Michigan 49621 USA Phone: 231-228-5980 Phone: 231-631-5150 Fax: 231-228-7052 Email: raypleva9101@bignetnorth.net |
Pleva's Meats 8974 S. Kasson St., Box 42 Cedar, Michigan 49621 USA Phone: 231-228-5000 Fax: 231-228-7052 Email: plevas@chartermi.net |