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Fast Food

McDonald's 'paying close attention' as competitors offer more vegetarian and vegan options

By Alexandra Deabler Fox News
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Your meaty Big Mac is staying right where it is — at least for now.

PIZZA HUT DENIES RUMORS OF VEGAN CHEESE

As Burger King prepares to launch its meat-free Impossible Whopper nationwide after a successful limited rollout last month, McDonald’s seems to be taking its time transitioning to vegetarian and vegan options, despite the growing demand of plant-based alternatives.

While the fast-food chain, which is the largest in the world with over 60,000 restaurants, is reportedly watching the vegetarian trend among its competitors, the company is considering whether they will add an item to its own menu.

Burger King prepares to launch its meat-free Impossible Whopper nationwide after a successful limited rollout last month.

Burger King prepares to launch its meat-free Impossible Whopper nationwide after a successful limited rollout last month. (Burger King)

“Our menu teams are clearly paying close attention to it,” McDonald’s CEO Steve Easterbrook said Tuesday to the Chicago Tribune. “The key for us is to identify sustaining consumer trends.”

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Though Easterbrook did not rule out the possibility, simply stating “there may be more to come but nothing much to say about it in the moment,” the Chicago Tribune reported.

McDonald’s restaurants in foreign markets already offer vegan and vegetarian options.

McDonald’s seems to be taking its time transitioning to vegetarian and vegan options, despite the growing demand.

McDonald’s seems to be taking its time transitioning to vegetarian and vegan options, despite the growing demand. (iStock)

Several other fast-food restaurants have started offering more vegetarian and vegan items. Among them are burger restaurants like Carl's Jr, which added a vegan Beyond Burger to its menu this year, and White Castle, which adopted the Impossible Burger sliders in 2018. Taco Bell announced a fully vegetarian menu rolling out this year, while Del Taco has announced a Beyond Meat taco and Chipotle has created two new plant-based “lifestyle bowls.”

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According to market research from Nielsen, sales of plant-based meat alternatives have grown 23 percent between 2017 and 2018 to over $683 million. Traditional meat sales rose 1 percent over the past three years to $85 billion, the Chicago Tribune reported.