The McPlant Is Probably Coming To A McDonald's Near You. Here's Why

It seems like a great time to be a restaurant-loving vegetarian. In recent years, more and more restaurants have begun to offer exciting, meat-free options for customers abstaining from animal products — far beyond black bean burgers and sad salads. Fast food chains have gotten in on the plant-based enthusiasm as well, with Panda Express adding vegan entrees like Beyond orange chicken and eggplant tofu to menus at select locations.

The meat-free trend has also extended to burger-centric restaurants: Burger King was early to the party when it rolled out its Impossible Whopper in 2019, followed by plant-based nuggets this year, which were greeted by much applause. KFC, too, has jumped on the bandwagon, testing plant-based fried chicken and nuggets to add to its rotation of famous real chicken and biscuits, per a press release. So how is the king of fast food spots, McDonald's, meeting demands to match these other rivals? With a little something called a McPlant, of course!

Having first been released in Europe before arriving in the States, the McPlant is described as McDonald's first-ever plant-based burger in collaboration with Beyond Meat, reports Eat This, Not That. According to Restaurant Dive, U.S.-based fans can expect it to expand dramatically from its current eight McDonald's locations to more than 700 locations in 2022 for a limited time in February and March — only six to eight weeks from this writing. As of right now, the eight locations currently serving the vegan burgers are doing quite well, selling "as many as 500 McPlant sandwiches a week, or roughly 70 per day." QSR says the McPlant patty contains peas, rice, and potatoes, while the burger is packed with McDonald's mainstays like pickles and American cheese.

In February of 2021, McDonald's signed a three-year deal with Beyond Meat, and this market test of the McPlant will serve as the company's decision-maker as to whether or not it should roll out the sandwich worldwide. Despite the lack of ads swarming your screen, you can be fairly confident that for at least a limited time, these bad boys will soon be available near you — and if you like them, maybe they'll become a permanent option.