McDonald’s Israel will add vegan burgers to the menu this summer.
The world’s largest fast-food chain will trial the “Big Vegan” — a plant-based burger made from soy and wheat protein — at select Tel Aviv locations starting this August. The price is unknown. It may launch nationwide if the meat-free burger proves to be a hit, Israeli business news publication Globes reports.
McDonald’s Vegan Options
The Big Vegan will use Incredible Burger made by Nestlé, which was introduced to the European market and McDonald’s Germany menu last April. Called the “Big Vegan TS,” the plant-based option is served with mustard, ketchup, onion, tomato, and greens. It’s cooked on a separate surface to avoid cross-contamination.
The Big Vegan TS was one of 200 products developed by McDonald’s in Munich. Only a quarter ever make it to the menu, but the plant-based burger made it because it met the company’s expectations for flavor.
Will McDonald’s Launch Vegan Options in the U.S.?
Bringing the Incredible Burger to other countries was always a possibility for the world’s largest food company.
“McDonald’s is an exciting and big customer, but it is not the only option and we have quite good capacity to cope with a (possible) extension beyond Germany,” Nestlé’s chef executive Marco Settembri told Reuters earlier this month.
The brand declined to comment if the Incredible Burger — which is called the Awesome Burger in the U.S. — would launch in McDonald’s stateside. CEO Steve Easterbrook told CNBC last May that the fast-food chain is still in the process of figuring out of launching a vegan burger would be worth the effort. He added that he doesn’t think the demand for plant-based options is a fad, but is curious to see if the buzz caused by leading brands such as Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods will die down.
“When you look at the whole meat-substitute type ideas, I think what will be interesting for us will be to see who is particularly interested in that,” Easterbrook explained. “Is it an existing customer who just wants an alternative option; does it bring a new customer in?”
