McDonald’s started selling faux-meat burgers

McDonald’s plans to add new burgers to its menu in Sweden and Denmark.

Fast food restaurant chain McDonald’s has begun a new phase of testing manufactured meat products for its burgers. According to the news agency Bloomberg, in-test sales of the new burger McPlant have started in European markets, particularly in Sweden and Denmark. 

McDonald’s plans to sell the new McPlant in Sweden until March 15 and in Denmark – until April 12, after the chain decided about the possibility of the project’s scale. Thus, in the spring, a new burger with a patty based on artificial Meat may appear in other markets as well. 

McDonald’s partner on the project is Beyond Meat, the world’s largest producer of artificial Meat. The original Beyond Meat recipe makes burger patties from pea protein and other ingredients. The McPlant burger also includes cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, onions, and sauces. 

Testing a new product for McDonald’s began in the Scandinavian countries, which are traditionally considered the primary market for various plant-based alternatives. Specifically, it was in Sweden and Finland that Unilever began selling all-vegetarian Magnum ice cream in 2018. 

The fast-food chain Burger King, for its part, began selling burgers made of artificial Meat made by the American company Impossible Foods in test mode as early as 2019. The first burgers using the new recipe were sold in restaurants in the U.S. and Canada. KFC also began testing sales of plant-based chicken sandwiches in 2020, and Pizza Hut launched its first plant-based pizza.