In the UK, McDonald’s offers a vegan burger called the McPlant. While trials of the McPlant were not successful in the US, the meat-free burger is available in countries such as Germany, Portugal, and the UK. The patty, developed in collaboration with Beyond Meat, is made from pea and rice proteins and is served with a variety of toppings.
However, the availability and composition of the McPlant burger differ in different countries. In the UK, where the McPlant has been on the menu since November 2021, the burger is certified as vegan and is served with vegan cheese and sandwich sauce. In other countries like the Netherlands, there may be potential contamination with meat due to the burger being described as “for flexitarians.”
I sampled both the McPlant and the most comparable non-vegan option, the Quarter Pounder with Cheese, from a McDonald’s in London. Both burgers came with standard toppings such as onion, pickles, ketchup, and mustard. The McPlant also included lettuce, tomato, and vegan sandwich sauce, while the Quarter Pounder with Cheese had two slices of processed cheese. It was notable that the cheese in the Quarter Pounder with Cheese had started to melt, while the vegan cheese in the McPlant had not.
Overall, the availability and composition of the McPlant burger vary by location, and while it has not been successful in the US, it remains popular in other countries such as the UK.