McDonald's To Launch a Plant-Based Burger: The McPlant (usatoday.com) 113
According to USA Today, McDonald's has developed a new plant-based platform dubbed McPlant that will debut in markets around the world early next year. From the report: "McPlant is crafted exclusively for McDonald's, by McDonald's," Ian Borden, McDonald's international president, said at the investor meeting. "In the future, McPlant could extend across a line of plant-based products including burgers, chicken substitutes and breakfast sandwiches." The plant-based and chicken sandwich announcements were part of the company's new growth strategy called "Accelerating the Arches." The strategy includes a commitment to the core menu.
"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," McDonald's said in a blog post Monday. "It's made with a juicy, plant-based patty and served on a warm, sesame seed bun with all the classic toppings." Borden said some markets will test the burger next year. Whether or not the vegan-friendly burger will arrive in the U.S. and a potential timeline was not immediately known. "We are excited about the opportunity because we believe we have a proven, delicious-tasting product," Borden said. "When customers are ready for it, we will be ready for them." Beyond Meat, a pioneer of plant-based meat substitutes, said it co-created the plant-based patty that will be part of the McPlant platform with 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," McDonald's said in a blog post Monday. "It's made with a juicy, plant-based patty and served on a warm, sesame seed bun with all the classic toppings." Borden said some markets will test the burger next year. Whether or not the vegan-friendly burger will arrive in the U.S. and a potential timeline was not immediately known. "We are excited about the opportunity because we believe we have a proven, delicious-tasting product," Borden said. "When customers are ready for it, we will be ready for them." Beyond Meat, a pioneer of plant-based meat substitutes, said it co-created the plant-based patty that will be part of the McPlant platform with McDonald's.
Also the name (Score:3)
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The McPlanet rejoices.
Have these people ever eaten at McDonalds?! (Score:5, Insightful)
...the McPlant delivers our iconic taste in a sink-your-teeth-in (and wipe-your-mouth) kind of sandwich
I've eaten enough McD burgers to know that "juicy" is not a word you can use to describe them; they tend to have the taste and texture of damp cardboard.
Re: Have these people ever eaten at McDonalds?! (Score:3, Insightful)
I will give you that their burgers can be tasty. But the flavor and juiciness come from the sauce, tomato, cheese and whatever else they put on. Not the meat patty.
Re:Have these people ever eaten at McDonalds?! (Score:5, Funny)
Damp cardboard already is a meat-free product
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...the McPlant delivers our iconic taste in a sink-your-teeth-in (and wipe-your-mouth) kind of sandwich
I've eaten enough McD burgers to know that "juicy" is not a word you can use to describe them; they tend to have the taste and texture of damp cardboard.
You must be eating the wrapping? It's better for you I think..
I have to admit, since they took the tallow out of the fry grease and started trying to server salads, it's been down hill for the golden arches. But hey, the McRib will be back in December for a few weeks...
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It highly depends on the country.
There's worlds between a US one and a German one, I'm being told. Somethingsomething food regulation somethingsomething.
It's still not actually food, of course.
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It's not our fault you live in the UK. Or Ferenginar, maybe?
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Or Ferenginar, maybe?
Well, since you mention it, the lettuce in a McDonalds burger isn't what you could call "crisp".
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It's iceberg. The Meh of lettuce.
Try a proper Frisee with small leaves, grown in just compost and no other fertilizer, harvested 30 minutes before eating, in a cream-garlic-vinegar-oil dressing, and some bits of tomato on top, and you know what I mean.
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It depends where in the world you are. I have not tried US McDs but the UK ones highly variable, some extremely dire and others not entirely terrible. The ones in Japan though, the burgers actually look similar to the photos. In Japan the cheap crappy fast food is from Lotteria, and McDs is a bit more up-market, along with MOS Burger and semi-gormet chain Freshness Burger.
Hope it won't turn out like the Arch Deluxe... (Score:3)
... and be a total McFacePlant.
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I go to Mickey Deeznutz on occasion because it is fast and cheap. When I have gone in and they have failed to have some nationally advertised special (such as in the store in Fort Bragg, CA, which didn't have the cheap mcdoubles) I walk the fuck out and go somewhere else. The problem with the Arch Deluxe is that it costs too much for what you get. This problem is shared with basically all fast food burgers that cost more than about $2. They are all shit, even carl's six dollar burger, which BTW used to be p
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"Arch" is pronounced exactly like "Arsch" in German, which means "ass". ;)
Ass Deluxe! Is that the dad of Beef Supreme, who played in that movie called "Ass"?
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I remember when the Big n Tasty came out from McDonalds and my friends and I called it the Big n Nasty. One of us slipped up and ordered it with our name for it one time and discovered the staff found it hysterical.
Fuck them for that (Score:2)
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If it has cheese, it's not vegan. I don't think the special sauce is vegan either, since it almost certainly has mayonnaise (which means eggs) in it; it's basically just thousand-island dressing.
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Nobody cares about you cultist freaks. You don't eat there anyway. This product is for people who like McDonalds' burgers but in a lower-calorie option.
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You know this has nothing to do with calories, *at all*, right? ... how trash are the people where you live, mate?? Trailer park people are laughing at you!
Also, who goes to McDo to lose weight?
Also, calling people who don't eat there "cultist freaks"
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I'm defining cultist freaks as people whose dietary pettifoggery is so extremist that they agonize over cheese and mayonnaise and sauces. Trailer park people? Ancient vegetarian cultures like the Hindu are laughing at you.
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Vegan cheese and mayo, at least those used in a burger, are a solved problem. It's the patty itself that's difficult. Once you have a good vegan patty, pairing it with vegan cheese and mayo is just good business practice.
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"Cheese" doesn't have to have milk in it and "mayonnaise" doesn't have to have eggs in it but I couldn't tell you if McD's does or doesn't have those items.
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Apparently missing. /s
McDonalds is late to the party. Burger King already has a The Impossible Whopper.
BK could have fun with ads too:
Burger King: Missing the meat? Come meet us for your burgers! We don't beat our meat -- we want to plant our burgers in your hands.
Annnnd that's probably why I'm NOT in marketing ... /s
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Two all-veg patties special sauce cheese lettuce pickles onions on a sesame seed bun.
You deserve a break today, at McDonalds...
I remember a promotion - this was a LONG time ago - where you could call a particular phone number and sing that song to get a coupon for a free Big Mac (IIRC).
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It was probably Barry Manilow's home phone.
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I hate to admit it, but as a kid I remember watching a Barry Manilow TV special where, at one point, he sang a medley of his commercial jingles - McDonalds, Stridex ("give your face something to smile about"), along with many others which mercifully do not readily intrude on the forefront of my memories.
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The official title of that medley is "Very Special Medley". He used to do it in concert (and I think he still does).
Could be good for the nuggets (Score:5, Interesting)
To me the McDonalds chicken nuggets always tasted pretty questionable compared to almost any other place...
I could see a plant based "Chicken" nugget possibly even tasting better than the original in the case of McDonalds.
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I tend to think of McNuggets as Processed Meat Food...the chicken equivalent of Valveeta "cheese".
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McFacePlant is more like it..
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Ugh (Score:2)
I can truly say that I think that is an awful name. No imagination, no sign they are confident in that product, and it just sounds gross. McVeggie would be better, even if nobody would buy that either.
Blech.
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I don't think it would matter if they called it something else, people would probably settle on some other name. I doubt McPlant will stick in the common vernacular.
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"McVeggie" calls veggie burgers to mind. Everyone has an opinion about veggie burgers already. It's not generally a good opinion. No sane marketer would want to hitch its wagon to that.
If you hear "plants" and think "ew", you're not the target demographic. If you hear "veggie" and think "yum", you are literally nobody real who exists. (Come at me, non-true Scotsmen.)
a big McNo (Score:2)
aint no way would I give it a try. Their burgers already taste like cardboard. Hate to see what their fake meat would taste like.
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Burger King wins dismissal of vegans' lawsuit over Impossible Whopper [reuters.com]
What's in a name? (Score:1)
Somebody in their marketing department was really phoning it in if that's the best name they could come up with.
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So whatcha got?
McMoo-Less
McSaladPattie
McGreen
McJagger
McFiber
McMars
McFeed
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I kinda like McJagger, possibly FleetwoodMc?
Sounds McNasty (Score:3)
I will pass on this product.
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Sounds? Why are you listening to burgers?
Do people actually eat this stuff? (Score:1)
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Well you certainly do not have to eat it if you don't want to.
Makes me think about the people opposing marriage equality. No one was forcing them to marry someone of the same sex, it was just allowing those who wanted to marry someone of the same sex to do just that.
Re: Do people actually eat this stuff? (Score:1)
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Given a SJW's definition of those terms, you could simply replace them by "human". Or maybe "target of my bullying", if you can call soyboy screeching "bullying".
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But.. but... I think it's icky!!! And my magic book says it's bad!!! Therefore NOBODY can do it!!!!
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Fuck off with your strawan, loser.
Unless you have no freaking clue AT ALL, about its composition, it's obviously nasty.
It's literally a bunch of white powders, hydrated, artificially flavored and colored, textured with various chemical reactions, and then literally spraypainted with food coloring. I've seen sculptures made of more food-like materials!
But go on with your braindead teenager theatrics. Where were you...?
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I should have quoted. I was referring to parent's SECOND sentence/paragraph.
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You realize that, other than the bit about coloring, you're describing how bread is made?
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I think you misunderstand why people oppose marriage equality. At least for Western religions, they use their opposition to show their alleged G-d they deserve to go to the Great Food Bowl in the Sky (I was raised by cats). It has nothing to do with their religion per se, it is merely window dressing, false advertising.
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Well you certainly do not have to eat it if you don't want to.
Agreed. I'm also wondering about the need or desire for a vegetable patty that tastes like meat. If a person is opposed to eating meat for any reason then what is the point of substituting meat with something that is supposedly a close approximation to it in taste, texture, or whatever? Is there some dietary need for such a substitute? On matters of getting the protein, minerals, vitamins, and such there's going to be some need but that doesn't answer why it needs to taste like meat. I can understand w
Re:Do people actually eat this stuff? (Score:5, Insightful)
That's a serious question. I freely admit that I am very much in the camp that finds the idea of fake meat repulsive. How common or how rare is that?
Disclaimer: I like meat and eat it regularly.
The idea of fake meat? I understand the tofu angle, but there are lots of umami-rich meat replacements that don't really try to pass off as meat. There's were many of them go wrong. "This pea shit over there is in uncanny vally when compared to meat (and it smells of elderberry), but this whole mushroom hat over there pretty much make a decent patty to grill and put between some buns. Don't call it a burger though ".
Here's an extremely simple experiment to try at home: fry some (or a a lot, they shrink like crazy) sliced champignons with oil and some ground pepper until they're golden turning to brown (about 8-10 minutes at high temp) . Add some cummin if you like it, chop it up a little more, and use it in place of minced meat on a pizza for instance. It doesn't even pretend to be meat, but it fills a similar role in the meal and the taste is really good.
Also: I dare you to go to a high-end vegetarian (or even vegan) restaurant and not have a fantastic meal. I simply won't believe you if you don't enjoy it, those cooks are amazing. Or look to the tradidional Italian kitchen, where they hardly use meat because in the olden days the couldn't afford it. They make som really damn good food. Not to mention the Indians :)
Meat is good. Food without meat is good. Food with fake meat usually looses to both, although fake meat has become pretty good lately.
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They need to stop pounding so much salt into it.
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If they did that, then you could taste it, and you wouldn't want to eat it anyway.
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For starters, you're a bit behind the times on the quality of some fake meat products. Reviewing them as some one who also eats meat, Field Roast makes some truly impressive "sausages" that not only taste great but provide a very meaty "mouth feel" and the Beyond Burger is rock solid and supposedly that brand makes some really good "sausages" as well.
The appeal of this stuff isn't that vegan and vegetarian food can't be good without imitating meat. Far from it. The appeal is that some people who go vegetari
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Meat is good. Food without meat is good. Food with fake meat usually looses to both, although fake meat has become pretty good lately.
The word you want to use here is "loses." Looses is a different word.
I'm trying to improve my English; please correct my errors! :)
Happy to oblige!
Super size it (Score:2)
with double the fat & sodium... (Score:1)
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Not saving anything at all. Merely prolonging the inevitable limit to overpopulation by replacing early deaths with a long Bataan walk of suffering and THEN deaths.
Making sure more people can feed, with a population that grows *exponentially*, is quite a feat in terms of fantastic willful ignorance.
Yay! Now the resource wars over food with break out a whole TWO years later!
How about just not making that second child?? Would do more good than a thousand vegans ever could.
Moot (Score:2)
I wouldn't eat at McDonalds even if you paid me.
Never mind the "food". Just the smell I get on my hands from handling the tray and touching the outside of the items is something that I don't want to experience again.
Comment removed (Score:3, Interesting)
McTesla? (Score:2)
Costs more, environmental concerns sourcing the ingredients, positive emotional response?
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you get to think yourself "cruelty free", healthy, alternative, etc.
hippie stuff, in a sense.
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With a pesticide arms race and another race to the bottom with regard to level of processing and worth of the ingredients.
Let's be honest: This is done for only one single reason: Because the ingredients are worth single digit pennies, and it makes a lot of profit.
Also, are we deliberately ignoring all the long-term effects again? I bet you're one of those who think hair loss and arthritis and such "age-related diseases" are "because" of old age. Instead of decades of eating crap and the body's amazing abil
Re: These products are bad (Score:2)
"bad" is relative (Score:2)
In my research they tend to be significantly worse for your health, containing more calories, and sodium that the products they are substituting.
...but also no cholesterol, no hormones and no antibiotics.
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...but also no cholesterol, no hormones and no antibiotics.
As someone that grew up on a farm I know that if there's antibiotics in the meat then everyone that handled that tainted meat could face heavy fines, perhaps even jail time. Does that mean it doesn't happen? No, but it does mean it's rare.
I'm quite certain the same applies for the hormones, meat tainted with hormones will be quite rare. If hormones in your food bothers you then it would be best to stay away from meat substitutes. There's considerable evidence that many meat substitutes contain estrogen
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You forgot the most important aspect: Something is NOT the same as that same something but processed. Let alone heavily processed.
A white powder is not the same as a plant you just harvested. It has a completely different effect on your digestion and health.
Protein is especially problematic, because it has a complex but essential secondary and even tertiary structure (so structure upon structure upon structure) that is highly sensible and gets easily destroyed by almost anything, unless in an undamaged cell
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It Must Be Said (Score:2)
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Hey, don't insult vegetables! They have been outside and seen nature before!
Earlier this week... (Score:2)
That is a horrible name (Score:2)
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You mean the Morningstar ones, with egg and milk in them? LOLZ.
Yeah, takes animal products to have a veggie burger worth a darn nutritionally.
McShiitake? (Score:2)
Owing to knowing enthusiasts who hold work parties to inoculate logs, I grow shiitake mushrooms.
Depending on rainfall and other weather factors, it is possible to grow them burger sized. I like them best steamed over rice, but if you boil them, they have that slippery, chewy texture of that small slice of "what the heck is that" floating in your miso soup over at Benihana's.
The thing is, with a couple slices of bread and enough condiments, almost anything you stick there kind of, sort of tastes like a
Re: McShiitake? (Score:2)
Sounds good to me. But I am vegetarian. Problem with impossibles is they actually focus too much on flavor, vegetarians want nutritional satisfaction not taste. Once you stop meat for awhile you dont want taste, but miss the feeling of the nutrients.
Yuck. :-( (Score:2)
Chicken substitute? (Score:1)
With such a passing resemblance to actual chicken, I thought the McNuggets already were a chicken substitute.
The first time I ate them, my kindergarten teacher asked me what I had for lunch afterwards. I couldnâ(TM)t provide an answer that made any sense. She started trying to figure out if Iâ(TM)d eaten anything at all. I tried explaining that I had, but I had no idea what the hell it was.
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Thought so too. Apparently they get to call something so processed it has nothing to do with the original thing at all, "food".
Homer: Mmmhhh . . . substitute!
I thought this had happened years ago (Score:3)
I thought their patties have been devoid of meat from animals for years. Aren't their beef patties primarily congealed saw dust?
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They will tell you that their burgers are 100% beef, but they don't tell you which parts of the beef they're using. I would be shocked if they didn't partly contain ye olde "pink slime" which is technically beef, albeit ammonia-processed sludge.
To make it truly McDonalds-authentic... (Score:2)
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No need to add anything then.
Good (Score:2)
Good, because I just tried "Impossible Meat" and it smells like literal shit when uncooked and has a barely passable taste once cooked.
Beyond Meat, on the other hand, makes me hungry from the cooking smell alone.
Comes with enough Estrogen for a free set of.. (Score:2, Funny)
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Not sure if serious or not... There was a whole panic about plant estrogen a few years back, which is where the term "soy boy" comes from.
It was based on a misunderstanding of a study done on sheep that noted that eating plant estrogen affected their digestive systems. Needless to say it has little relevance to human biology or the kinds of changes that people attributed to it.
It was a popular idea on Infowars, for which they sold an antidote called "Brain Force Plus"... Which contained plant estrogen.
Processed crap is processed crap is processed crap (Score:3)
Let me guess: It's gonna be that same maximally processed crap we've seen everywhere else. Based on the logic, that if some white powder that is so pure and unnatural that it could come from a pharmacy, is "natural" and "healthy" because it once used to be a bean. If only you flavor and texture and literally spraypaint it enough.
Have fun with Now even more diseases and malnutrition!
I've had a Beyond Meat Burger, they're not bad (Score:3)
I tried a Beyond Meat Burger at A&W's, they're not bad. You can tell it's not meat, but it's quite close.
That being said, I don't get why people are so bent out of shape over these burgers.
They should call it.. (Score:1)
McNope (Score:2)
I'm not going to eat a friggin' veggie burger. Yes, I've tried them. No, I don't want to eat them.
Anyone (Score:2)
When chicken was starting to become a thing in fast food, someone asked Ray Kroc what McDonald's would be selling in (still future) year 2000.
He said, "I don't know what we'll be selling. But we will be selling more of it than anyone else."
Hey, McFly! (Score:2)
Make a like a tree and get off my burger.
Perfect application for it (Score:3)
I challenge you to try and take a patty out of the McDonalds burger and just eat it on its own without throwing up. The only thing that makes McDonalds palatable is the shitton of salt and sugar in their sauces and everything other than the patty, and even then it helps if you drink some serious amounts of alcohol beforehand.
Honestly these tasteless fast food joints are the perfect place to replace meat with vegetarian nothingness and absolutely no one would notice.
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You know a fact (GMO being bad) is not wrong because you state it in big letters and speak like a retard while saying it, and merge it with something wrong as a straw man, right?
Go back to your programmers, script!
(Hint: It's all crap. Just grow your normal damn plants and animals and microbes from nature, you freaks!)