Burger King is set to revamp its vegan and vegetarian range with a vegan version of the Rebel Whopper’ burger that it launched last year, and a plant-based version of its chicken ‘Royale’ burger. Both are due in the coming weeks.
Last January it made its plant-based debut with Rebel Whopper but was forced to withdraw it within months due to social distancing restrictions in its kitchens.
There was also a major push back from vegans who noted that the Rebel Whopper contained egg-based mayonnaise and was cooked alongside meat burgers
In a bid to make up for lost time the chain’s UK CEO Alasdair Murdoch told the i newspaper that the two burghers would be available as soon as Covid-related restrictions are lifted and that meat-free nuggets are also in the pipeline
Murdoch said that within a decade, up to 50 per cent of Burger King UK’s menu could be plant-based by 2030 “Over time the amount of beef that we are selling as a proportion of our total sales is reducing,” he said.
Burger King UK has also this week promised to scrap its use of single-use plastic by 2025, cut food waste, and source sustainable soy, timber and coffee as part of its new sustainability agenda.
As for whether cultured meat grown in a lab was on the company radar Murdoch replied
“Our customers, I don’t think they are quite ready for that today. It doesn’t mean they won’t ever be in the future, but our sense would be that they aren’t quite there.”
There’s a lot more vegan news on the Vegan Curious podcast
