Beyond fast food: KFC latest in chain restaurants to introduce meat alternatives

Starting Tuesday, customers in Atlanta can enjoy their Kentucky Fried Chicken without the chicken. In a partnership with Beyond Meat, the chain is rolling out plant-based, vegan "fried chicken," making it the first U.S. fast-food chain to offer a Beyond chicken item, reports CNBC.

The company will take customer feedback into consideration to figure out whether they will offer the "Kentucky Fried Miracle" option nationwide, per CNBC.

KFC is just the latest in a sea of fast food chains offering meat imitation options. Beyond Meat has partnered with Del Taco, Carl's Jr., Subway, and Dunkin', to name a few. Rival brand Impossible Foods has options at Burger King, Little Caesars, and Red Robin, among others.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

The trend coincides with growing awareness of the link between human diet and the environment, and concern that meat can be unhealthy — although Beyond meats may not be the healthiest alternative. Plant-based food sales were up 31.3 percent from April 2017 to April 2019, reports Forbes, and The Economist deemed 2019 the "Year of the Vegan."

But we'll have to wait until tomorrow to find out if the vegan fried chicken will be still be as "finger lickin' good" as KFC claims.