Rummors that McDonalds were testing a new plant-based burger option for its menus were circulating towards the end of 2020, and now the first signs of the ‘McPlant’ has surfaced in selective outlets in Denmark and Sweden.
The McPlant burger features a patty made from pea and rice proteins, which was co-developed with Beyond Meat. Although, truth be told, the trial isn’t aimed at vegetarians as the burgers are supposedly cooked on the same grill as the meat patties. A press release from McDonald’s in Sweden described the McPlant as an option for “flexitarians” — people who are loosely vegetarian but occasionally eat some meat.
The fast food goliath has not revealed if and how it will roll out the product to other markets, with the success of the McPlant trial in Scandinavian still to be evaluated. The trials run within Sweden will last until March 15 and April 12 in Denmark.
The McPlant is the latest in a trend of fast food companies going in on simulated meats. In recent years, Burger King, Dunkin’, Starbucks, KFC, and others have all dabbled with products from either Beyond Meat or its competitor, Impossible Foods.
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