Move Over, Big Mac—McDonald’s Joins the Beyond Burger Game
The latest fast-food chain to take a bite out of plant-based burgers
McDonald’s has no beef with adding Beyond Burgers to its menu, at least temporarily. The fast-food chain plans to test alternative meat burgers at 28 locations—all in Ontario, Canada—starting Sept. 30. Beyond Meat created an exclusive plant-based patty for McDonald’s. The result is the PLT—plant, lettuce, tomato—a twist on the classic BLT.
Laurent Altmin of McDonald’s global corporate communications told Adweek the test is a chance for customers to see innovation and taste variety. “Specifically, this test allows us to learn more about real-world implications, including customer demand, customer experience, the restaurant logistics of cooking and serving this product to guests, the supply chain logistics of making this product available, and other important information that may inform future decisions,” Altmin said.
In recent months, there has been a rise in both demand and sales of alternative meat products at fast-food restaurants. Vegan options are currently available at Burger King, a la the Impossible Burger, as well as Dunkin’, Subway and KFC. And, Beyond Meat continues to adopt large chain restaurants such as Del Taco, TGI Friday’s and Carl’s Jr. Impossible Foods, another company in the space, has doubled the size of its Oakland, Calif. manufacturing plant.
Markets responded positively to the announcement from the golden arches. According to Market Watch, both Beyond Meat’s and McDonald’s shares went up in early trading.
The custom plant-based patty will be sandwiched between McDonald’s signature sesame bun. The burger will not have any artificial flavors, preservatives or colors, and is planned to be priced at $6.49 Canadian dollars (about $4.90).
Recently, Adweek staffers reviewed some of the most popular faux meat options on the market. Check out the video taste test below:
