McDonald’s Says Plant-Based Test in Two Key US Cities Failed
A cross section of a 'beyond burger' displays the Beyond Meat Inc. plant-based burger patty inside a TGI Friday's Inc. restaurant in Moscow, Russia, on Friday, Sept. 27, 2019. McDonald’s Corp. has selected Beyond Meat’s faux-meat patties for a plant-based burger test in Canada.
(Bloomberg) -- A McDonald’s Corp. test of its plant-based burger in San Francisco and Dallas “was not successful in either market,” Joe Erlinger, the chain’s US chief, said Wednesday.
US consumers aren’t looking for “McPlant or other plant-based proteins from McDonald’s,” Erlinger said at the Wall Street Journal‘s Global Food Forum in Chicago. Following the remarks, McDonald’s said that Erlinger was referring to a previous test in the markets that ended in 2022. The company has said plant-based food has fared better in European markets.
Shares of Beyond Meat Inc., which has partnered with McDonald’s to produce the McPlant burger, fell 2.5% at 12:01 p.m. in New York trading Wednesday, paring an earlier decline. McDonald’s shares were little changed.
Instead of plant-based options, McDonald’s is investing in its chicken offerings as consumers lean toward that protein. The company sells more chicken than beef these days, he added.
“Some of it’s driven by affordability,” he said. “Chicken is less expensive to produce, and so for a consumer that’s looking for more affordable food, chicken is a great option right now.”
(Adds details from company on timing of the test and updates share trading.)
Most Read from Bloomberg
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.