McDonald's has taken part of the plant-based burger trend by running a limited test of its PLT (plant, lettuce and tomato) burger in Canada.
The plant-based burger will be available for 12 weeks in 28 McDonald's restaurants in Southwestern Ontario, Canada by the end of September.
The limited test run follows Burger King's test launch of its plant-based Impossible burger. It is currently perceived as a rival to the Beyond Meat burger and is now available at any Burger King restaurant nationwide.
The fast food sector has become a battleground for meat alternatives as the companies Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods compete to introduce their plant-based products into as many restaurants as possible.
In August, KFC partnered with Beyond meat and started testing plant-based chicken nuggets and boneless wings at a restaurant in Atlanta, Georgia. Beyond Meat products can also be purchased at Carl's Jr. and Del Taco while a Beyond Meat breakfast sausage is being tested by Tim Hortons in Canada.
On the other hand, Impossible Foods announced in May that it is developing meatless sausage crumbles for the Little Caesars pizza chain in some US states. The company has also announced that its plant-based meat will be available in 102 stores, including Fairway in New York and 100 Wegmans locations across seven states.
The share price of Beyond Meat Inc. has surged by 17% before trading started on Thursday.
Ann Wahlgren, McDonald's vice president of global menu strategy, wrote in a blog post saying that the company has been closely observing the growing demand for meat alternatives. She referenced the size of the test that they were launching at the end of September in Canada.
She wrote "Why just a small test? We're in learning mode, so testing is a major part of how we develop our menu. It's how we look- before we leap."
