Beyond Meat Partners with McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and KFC

Beyond Meat just partnered with McDonald’s, KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut to take its vegan meat to fast-food restaurants around the world.

The California-based food tech company secured a three-year global agreement with McDonald’s Corporation. Beyond Meat will be the chain’s preferred supplier of its McPlant patty. McDonald’s began testing the pea protein-based patty in select locations in Denmark and Sweden earlier this year. 

According to the vegan meat brand’s press release, Beyond Meat and McDonald’s will “explore co-developing other plant-based menu items.” The meatless options will include plant-based pork, chicken, and egg as part of a larger McPlant menu.

Beyond Meat’s global partnership with Yum! Brands—the parent company of KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut—will help the chains’ to expand their plant-based protein menu items. 

“We’re excited about the long-term potential plant-based protein menu items have to attract more customers to our brands, especially younger consumers,” Chris Turner, Yum! Brands CFO, said in a press release.

Beyond Meat Partners With McDonald’s and More

This isn’t the first time that Beyond Meat and Yum! Brands have worked together. 

The two partnered back in 2020 to test the Beyond Burger in select Taco Bell, KFC, and Pizza Hut locations across China. The same year, Pizza Hut U.S. launched the Beyond Italian Sausage Pizza and the Great Beyond Pizza.

In 2019, KFC tested Beyond Fried Chicken in Atlanta. This made it the first national quick-service restaurant to introduce plant-based chicken. The trial was a success; KFC sold out of the plant-based chicken in less than five hours. So, the company expanded the trial to more than 70 locations across the U.S.

McDonald’s first tested a Beyond Meat burger in Ontario in 2019. The brand developed the plant-based patty exclusively for the chain.

“Our new McPlant platform is all about giving customers more choices when they visit McDonald’s,” Francesca DeBiase said in a press release. DeBiase is McDonald’s executive vice president and chief supply chain officer.

She added: “We’re excited to work with Beyond Meat to drive innovation in this space, and entering into this strategic agreement is an important step on our journey to bring delicious, high quality, plant-based menu items to our customers.”