KFC is stepping up to the trend of meatless dishes, launching a vegan version of its crispy chicken burger in the UK.
The fast-food chain called its first vegetable offering "The Imposter". The hamburger, which uses a Quorn steak and vegan mayonnaise, will be sold at select restaurants for four weeks starting June 17.
Quorn is a substitute for meat that gets its protein content from a fermented mushroom. KFC describes the hamburger as "a triumph of deception."
KFC is the latest in a string of restaurant chains and food producers trying to capitalize on the growing appetite of the public for alternatives to meat. Earlier this week, Burger King announced that they were expanding the distribution of their popular meatless hamburger, Impossible Whopper, to 100 locations in the San Francisco Bay area.
In May, McDonald's launched a meatless burger at stores in Germany, one of its largest international markets.
The trend is growing faster than many observers anticipated as consumers seek alternatives to meat to diversify their diets or reduce their environmental footprint.
Globally, the meat substitute retail market could grow from approximately 18,700 million dollars in 2018 to 23,000 million dollars in 2023, according to Euromonitor International.
One producer, Beyond Meat, which had a tremendously successful IPO in May, reported last week that its sales reached 40.2 billion in the first quarter of 2019, 215% more than in the same period last year.
The company expects overall revenues to exceed 210 million this year, an increase of more than 140%.
Animal rights groups praised KFC for offering the vegan burger.
"We are confident that it will be a great success with the growing number of vegans, vegetarians and flexitarians throughout the UK," said Dawn Carr, director of corporate vegan projects at PETA.
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