(Courtesy Beyond Meat)
Some marriages are made in heaven! The one between Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) and Beyond Meat certainly qualifies and now this partnership is kicking off 2022 with a US wide debut of plant-based chicken on January 10. And it tastes ‘finger lickin’ good.
The plant-based chicken was exclusively made for KFC, according to a joint press release. It was made to mimic the flavor of KFC’s iconic fried chicken in a plant-based option.
“The mission from day one was simple – make the world-famous Kentucky Fried Chicken from plants,” Kevin Hochman, president, KFC US said in the press release. “And now over two years later we can say, ‘mission accomplished.’”
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Behold! A crispy miracle coming 1/10. pic.twitter.com/QgHiYsYfqX
— KFC (@kfc) January 5, 2022
The journey to the perfect plant-based chicken
While Beyond Meat plant-based burgers caught the world by storm almost a decade ago, a chicken variety took a bit longer. The first trial of Beyond Fried Chicken took place as a limited run in Atlanta, Georgia in August 2019. It was a huge success and sold out in less than five hours.
In 2020, the trials were expanded to three additional cities which led to rave reviews and additional sell-outs. There were some tweaks to the original offering, according to CNN, with the most significant one being a switch to a nugget from a boneless wing to serve it with dipping sauces. “The taste is so good that they might choose it over regular fried chicken,” Hochman told CNN.
He said that the chain’s customers want to eat less animal products but aren’t ready to become vegan or vegetarian. But this new menu item is not for strict vegans or vegetarians because it will be prepared in the same kitchens where chicken is cooked.
Faux meat and dairy are growing in popularity
People are lowering their consumption of animal-based proteins for health, and environmental reasons as well as the desire not to cause animal suffering. Eating plant-based foods can give you all the protein and nutrients you need according to Healthline and now it’s easier than ever.
With the roll-out of KFC’s Beyond Meat chicken, the fast-food giant joins with other chains that sell plant-based substitutes. McDonalds sells a vegan McPlant burger in the UK while Burger King’s plant-based whopper is made from Impossible Foods and the company launched vegan pork in 2021 that is only available in select restaurants. Ikea rolled out a vegan variety of their iconic Swedish meatballs in 2019.
Supermarkets are also jumping on the plant-based bandwagon by providing a myriad of plant-based meat and dairy items. There are so many options available and the market is expanding. it’s clear that this trend is here to stay!
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