McDonald’s, the biggest game in town when it comes to fast food, just announced that it was launching a veggie burger worldwide next year.
Per McDonald’s,
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
I don’t know if it will be the best (I’m pretty crazy about the Impossible Whopper), but they are right in noting that there are other plant-based burgers out there — a lot of them. An industry report found that over half of all major food conglomerates are working on plant-based products because people are demanding them and companies have been pleased with the results. As are fast food restaurants: virtually all of them have plant-based options now or are test marketing them, including Burger King, Carl’s Jr., Del Taco, Taco Bell, Red Robin, Bareburger, White Castle, Chipotle, Habit Burger, Shake Shack, Qdoba, Quiznos, and KFC.
I am not surprised. As Jennifer, my wife, and I predicted in All American Vegan, our first cookbook, if you make it easy and convenient for people to choose plant-based options, more people will. And that prediction has borne out. “A 2018 [industry] report: found that more than 30% of Americans have meat-free days, more than 50% of adults drink non-dairy milk and about 83% are adding more plant-based foods to their diets.”
Indeed, a global food industry research firm is also predicting that in the next 20 years, 60% of the world’s meat will NOT come from slaughtered animals. Instead, it will come from plant-based meat analogues and meat grown in labs from cultured cells. And they say, that is a very conservative estimate. The percentage is likely to be significantly higher
That is not only good news for animals (one report says over 250,000 animals are being saved annually as a result of just two companies: Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods), but animal lovers. No matter what city you live in, soon, if not already, the question for those who want delicious, vegan fast food, will no longer be, “is there anywhere we can eat?” It will be, “where do we want to eat?”
Now if McDonald’s would just take the “natural beef flavor” (cow’s milk proteins) out of the fries, the experience would be complete…
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