QSR Chains Continue to Look for Meat Alternatives

After Burger King's announcement earlier this month that it was trialling a new plant-based Whopper, another American QSR chain is making changes with Del Taco putting Beyond Meat on its menus.

Fast-food giant Burger King has developed a new Whopper burger with Impossible Foods, a California-based company that makes plant-based substitutes, titled 'The Impossible Whopper'. The new addition to over 50 locations around St Louis this April is designed to "bleed" like a conventional beef burger, and even taste like meat thanks to the use of genetically modified yeast to produce heme, a protein which delivers on this flavour.

Del Taco meanwhile has partnered with Impossible Foods' biggest competitor, Beyond Meat, to create two new plant-based tacos filled with Beyond Meat's meatless crumbles: the Beyond Avocado Taco (vegan) and the Beyond Taco (with cheese). Having already tested the tacos on menus last year, the full roll out makes Del Taco the first Mexican fast-food restaurant to put Beyond Meat on its menus.

Nestlé also announced this month that it would also try to develop its own plant-based burger, with the "Incredible Burger" in Europe and the "Awesome Burger" in the US this autumn, according to reports.

The plant-based fast food scene is rapidly evolving, and is one that we expect to continue to grow rapidly as consumers look for meat-alternatives whether vegetarian, vegan, or just looking to reduce their meat intake for health and environmental reasons.

Find out more about Del Taco and it's new tacos here.