McDees in the US is going plant-based! Finally!
World’s largest restaurant chain announced on Monday that the U.S market will be no exception when it comes to plant-based burger offerings. I have been following McD’s vegan options in Europe and Asia, but finally, we will be able to taste some plant-based patties that are fried here on McDonald’s grills in the US. I know, I know, … many of you will say “Finally!!” and, yeah, I agree. This news is quite exciting!
This announcement comes long after all the other big names like Burger King, Carl’s Jr., White Castle, and a slew of others have rolled out their plant-based options in conjunction with either Beyond Meat or Impossible Meats. Being a veteran in the industry, McDonald’s™ is very careful about its US consumer base and I am sure they’ve studied the market closely for the past few years so that they can gain flexitarian and vegan followers in the States as well. Keep in mind that McDonald’s already conducted a market study in Canada in partnership with Beyond Meat.
McPlant is a cool moniker!
McPlant, the name of their new meatless patty is quite catchy, I must admit. I cannot wait to taste it myself. We do not know just yet, where and who will be producing the McPlant ™patties, but we do know that Beyond Meat™ just helped McDonald’s co-create the new plant-based patty.
Who will be making the patty?
In an interview with CNBC’s Carl Quintanilla, McDonald’s™ CEO, Chris Kempczinski said “We haven’t made a decision yet about how we’re going to be and which suppliers are supporting our global rollout, so I don’t want to comment on that.”
Either way, all those efforts by celebs and petitions to get Mickey Dee’s to finally incorporate a vegan burger option on its menu finally paid off. By the looks of it, this new patty called McPlant is just the beginning and we can finally rejoice!
Also, on their corporate website McDonald’s states that “In fact, we think our culinary team nailed it. There are other plant-based burgers out there, but the McPlant delivers our iconic taste in a sink-your-teeth-in (and wipe-your-mouth) kind of sandwich. It’s made with a juicy, plant-based patty and served on a warm, sesame seed bun with all the classic toppings. Markets can adopt the McPlant when they’re ready and we expect some to test the burger next year.” McDonald’s is known for its diversified international menu globally.
European and Asian stores already have plant-based options
Even though the name McDonald’s™ is as American as an apple pie or Coke™, an item that you can buy in their restaurant in France is not necessarily available in Germany and an item you order from their menu in Japan is not necessarily available in the US. That is just the way an International franchise works. With rapidly changing trends in food production, sustainability requirements, and various other factors, consumer demographics and demands change domestically in the US as well. McDonald’s restaurants in Europe and Asia had vegan options on their menus for quite some time now.
Takeaway
These small additions to restaurant menus are baby steps towards big changes that are coming in the near future and that we have to be ready to embrace. Some die-hard fans of McDonald’s beef patties are mocking the plant-based version of the famous burger already. But, It is time for the US consumers to enjoy their favorite burger in a meatless form if they please to do so.