Fast Food: Latest News 2023 - vegconomist: the vegan business magazine

© Shinsegae Foods

Shinsegae’s No Brand Burger Chain Introduces the Better Burger as First of “Numerous” Alternative Launches in Korea

June 1, 2023

South Korea: Shinsegae Food, the food business arm of retail giant Shinsegae Group, announces the launch of the Better Burger at its No Brand Burger chain. The burger is created with its ground Better Meat and features fully plant-based cheese, bolognese sauce, and buns, which were all developed in-house. Interestingly, the company is touting the launch as a world’s first. Shinsegae claims this is the “first whose four major ingredients are all plant based, including ‘Better Bun’ […], a patty made with ‘Better Meat’, [and] recently developed veggie cheese and sauce. Among burger franchises around the world, No Brand Burger’s ‘Better Burger’ is the first burger even whose cheese is also plant-based.” This is a bold claim which is debatable, since even the McPlant is …

Organisations and Brands:Shinsegae Foods

Odd Burger

©Odd Burger Corp.

Odd Burger Terminates Letter of Intent With Zoglo’s Food Corp

May 30, 2023

At the end of April 2023, Canada’s vegan fast food chain Odd Burger Corporation announced an LoI with plant-based food company Zoglo’s Food Corp whereby Odd Burger was to acquire 100% of its issued and outstanding common shares and combine the businesses. Odd Burger today states that this non-binding letter of intent has been terminated in accordance with its terms. “The company continues to pursue other business opportunities and wishes Zoglo’s success in their future operations and business objectives,” says the press release. Amid an ongoing list of announcements, this March the company appointed Marc Goodman, Vice President and General Manager at 7-Eleven Canada Inc, to its Board of Directors. Furthermore, the company today posted financial results for its second quarter, ending March 31, 2023. …

Organisations and Brands:Odd Burger

Australia's Vegan Food Hub is raising funds to expand its business across Australia

© Soul Burger

The Vegan Food Hub Launches Crowd Equity Raise to Open 40 Vegan Fast Food Joints in Australia

May 31, 2023May 30, 2023

Note: this article was amended to correct 2028 to 2029 The Vegan Food Hub (VFH), an Australian vegan restaurant company that owns Sydney’s burger chain Soul Burger and ghost-kitchen brands Plantas Taqueria and Zaynas Lebanese, recently announced the launch of a crowd equity raise to expand its restaurant portfolio. Amit Tewari, a pioneer in Sydney’s vegan scene, established Soul Burger in 2015 and founded VFH to popularise vegan food and make it readily accessible throughout Australia. His company operates four vegan burger stores across New South Wales, including Parramatta, Glebe, Newtown, and Randwick. It has eight delivery-only locations of its other plant brands. “We will be building brands across a diverse range of cuisines, with the unifying theme being, they are all vegan!” says VFH. 40 restaurants …

Organisations and Brands:Plantas Taqueria Soul Burger The Vegan Food Hub Zaynas Lebanese

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Neat Burger founders

© Neat Burger

Neat Burger Raises $18M as Sales at First US Location Beat Expectations

June 1, 2023May 30, 2023

Plant-based fast food chain Neat Burger has raised $18 million in a Series B round led by private institutional investment firm B-Flexion. Other participants included Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton (a longtime backer), Chimera Capital, and new investors such as Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. Neat Burger will use the funding to continue expanding its global reach. The news comes after the UK-based chain opened its first permanent US location in Nolita, New York City, last month. Sales so far have beaten expectations, and the store is currently the best performing in the group’s estate due to high levels of repeat purchases. “We see New York as a tastemaker gateway to the US, and by all metrics it has been our most successful launch to …

Organisations and Brands:Neat Burger

Vegan Crab Cake Sandwich at PLNT Burger

©The Plant Based Seafood Co

Mind Blown Seafood and PLNT Burger Team Up to Launch “New Bay” Crab Cake Sandwich

May 26, 2023

In celebration of World Ocean Month, Mind Blown™ by The Plant Based Seafood Co. and vegan chain PLNT Burger announce they are partnering to launch the New Bay Crab Cake Sandwich this summer. Available for a limited time, the sandwich will be sold at PLNT Burger’s 7 locations across the DC Metro area – including Maryland, Virginia and Washington DC – from June 1st until Labor Day weekend. The New Bay sandwich features Mind Blown’s Maryland-Style Plant Based Crab Cake, which is said to offer the real taste and texture of traditional crab meat, and contains 11 grams of protein. As part of Mind Blown’s mission to protect the oceans, 1% of profits will be donated to the Coral Restoration Foundation, which works to restore the …

Organisations and Brands:Mind Blown PLNT Burger

MAX Burgers

© MAX Burgers

Sweden’s Oldest Burger Chain MAX Burgers Launches “Supreme Green” Meat-Free Menu

May 25, 2023

Swedish chain MAX Burgers has launched its new Supreme Green meatless menu, as the company works towards the goal of making half the burgers it sells red-meat-free. MAX Burgers’ original Green menu was introduced in 2016, and the chain has now debuted more meat-free options to “make going green the natural choice”. These include the vegan Real Green Burger, which is made from mung beans, and the lacto-ovo vegetarian Crispy Supreme burger, made from Swedish yellow peas. Fully plant-based items on the Supreme Green menu also include the Plant Beef Burger and the Crispy Green Nuggets. Some options are not suitable for vegans as they contain dairy cheese. Founded in 1968, MAX Burgers is Sweden’s oldest restaurant chain and now has 191 locations; most are …

Organisations and Brands:Max Burgers

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UNLIMEAT 2 Hands corn dog

UNLIMEAT X 2 Hands

Cult Chain Two Hands Launches UNLIMEAT Vegan Corn Dogs in Response to Demand

May 24, 2023

UNLIMEAT, formed in South Korea and also operating from the US, announces a collaboration with Two Hands, a US franchise offering a range of Korean-style corn dogs, to launch a vegan option containing UNLIMEAT’s vegan sausage, in response to growing consumer demand. Two Hands Corn Dogs operates in more than 60 locations throughout the US and states there are hundreds more branches set to open across the rest of 2023. The business has gained attention in the United States for its unique offering of a diverse range of fillings and coatings, with the UNLIMEAT collab representing the chain’s first vegan option. UNLIMEAT claims that it runs the largest plant-based meat-exclusive factory in Asia, with a wide portfolio including several products suitable for the American palette …

Organisations and Brands:Two Hands Unlimeat

Vegan Fast Food on Table

©Hart House

Kevin Hart to Open “Hart House” Drive Thru in LA, While Slutty Vegan Prepares to Launch First Texas Location

May 15, 2023

This month, two of the biggest-trending names in fast food – Kevin Hart’s Hart House and Pinky Cole’s Slutty Vegan – are expanding their brands with breakthrough launches in California and Texas. In Los Angeles, superstar actor and comedian Kevin Hart is preparing to open two new locations of Hart House – an all-vegan concept he launched in 2022. Opening May 23, the first of these (and third overall) is located on the famed Sunset Boulevard, where it reportedly replaces a former McDonald’s and will feature the brand’s first-ever drive-thru. Inside, Hart House Hollywood offers a 2,130 sq ft space with 24 interior seats and 16 outdoor seats. The menu, originally created with a former Burger King chef, will feature Hart House’s curated plant-based sandwiches …

Organisations and Brands:Hart House Slutty Vegan

Burger King Barcelona exterior

Burger King España

Burger King Opens Plant-Forward Popup in Barcelona, Says it Sold 30M Meat-Free Products in 2022

May 9, 2023May 9, 2023

One Burger King location at the Westfield Glories shopping center in Barcelona becomes a plant-forward popup for the month of May, for the ‘Westfield Good Festival’, an event organized by the mall to celebrate Earth Month. From last Thursday (May 4th) until the end of the month, the fast food giant has converted the space with decorations for Earth Month and will be offering the widest range of meat-free options, entailing vegan and vegetarian products, available thus far in Barcelona. The company claims that throughout 2022, it sold nearly 30 million meat-free products. At the Barcelona location, consumers can purchase plantbased versions of the new Cheesy Doritos, Cheeseburger, Cheeseburger BBQ, and Chicken Wrap, as well as The King Huevo, Cheese Bacon XXL and Steakhouse, along …

Organisations and Brands:Burger King

Veggie Shack Burger Patty at Shake Shack

©Shake Shack

Shake Shack Unveils First Vegan Patty, Adds NotCo Milkshakes and Custard to Permanent Menu

May 2, 2023

US burger chain Shake Shack announces it is adding three plant-based items to its permanent menu, including the Veggie Shack, its first 100% vegan patty. The chain will also make its Non-Dairy Chocolate Shake and Non-Dairy Frozen Custard, developed in partnership with NotCo, a new part of its core menu. NOTE: To be fully vegan, the Veggie Shack must be ordered without cheese, ShackSauce and with a lettuce wrap instead of bun. According to Shake Shack, the new Veggie Shack required months of extensive R&D and taste tests in its New York City locations. Made with grains and seasonal vegetables, the patty features mushrooms, sweet potatoes, carrots, farro and quinoa, American cheese (non-vegan), crispy onions, pickles and ShackSauce (non-vegan.) The burger is priced at $8.29, …

Organisations and Brands:NotCo ShakeShack

Vegan Brunch Burger

©Next Level Burger

Next Level Burger and JUST Egg Team Up to Celebrate “National Egg Month” with Plant-Based Brunch Burger

May 1, 2023April 28, 2023

Starting May 1, plant-based burger chain Next Level Burger (NLB) announces it will debut The Brunch Burger featuring JUST Egg to help customers celebrate US National Egg Month in a more healthy and sustainable way. While National Egg Month can be a time to recognize chicken eggs as a popular source of protein, NLB says, egg production can also be very harmful to the environment, with US egg farming using 93 million acres of land and 51 billion gallons of water each year. In contrast, the plant-based JUST Egg, made from mung beans, uses 98% less water, 83% less land and creates 93% fewer CO2 emissions than chicken eggs. It also offers six grams of plant protein, with no cholesterol and less saturated fat than …

Organisations and Brands:Just Egg Next Level Burger

Ready Burger founders

© Ready Burger

Ready Burger Launches Crowdfunding Campaign to Fund First Sit-in Premises

April 24, 2023

Ready Burger, a plant-based fast food brand based in London, UK, is aiming to raise at least £250,000 through a new crowdfunding round. The funding will support the opening of Ready Burger’s first sit-in location in the south of England, and will also help the brand roll out its product range into food service and retail outlets UK-wide. Throughout this year, Ready Burger will work to develop new flavours and progress with new food tech partnerships. Ready Burger claims to have sold almost 500,000 products and generated over £1 million in revenue since it launched in 2021. Recently, the fast food brand announced a partnership with flavour and fragrance manufacturer Givaudan to use the latter’s award-winning PrimeLock+ technology. This imitates animal fat and locks flavour …

Organisations and Brands:Ready Burger

Neat Burger Nolita

Credit: Vito Oliva, image supplied

Lewis Hamilton’s Neat Burger Opens First US Location in New York City

April 25, 2023April 18, 2023

Neat Burger, the plant-based burger chain by F-1 champion Lewis Hamilton, has opened its first permanent US restaurant. Located in NYC, the opening is part of the chain’s plans to open 30 additional outlets around the globe in the coming years, following the success of its eight UK locations. Situated in the Nolita neighborhood of Lower Manhattan, the first US-based Neat Burger offers a menu of plant-based burgers, chick’n sandwiches, hot dogs, tater tots, fries and milkshakes. For the grand opening, Neat Burger offered free burgers to the first 100 guests, and reports it received a huge response, with hundreds of guests lining up to celebrate the occasion. The Nolita restaurant follows Neat Burger’s six-month temporary pop-up location in UrbanSpace on Park Avenue. The company’s …

Organisations and Brands:Neat Burger

Wamame Launches 'Waygu' beef at Germany's biggest sushi chain

Waygu © Top Tier Foods

Wamame Launches ‘Waygu’ Beef at Germany’s Biggest Sushi Chain Eat Happy Group

May 31, 2023April 17, 2023

Canada’s Wamame Foods announces the launch of its ultra-premium Waygu plant-based meat at Germany’s largest sushi concept, Eat Happy Group, marking its debut on the European market. The introduction of Wamame’s Waygu will begin as a limited store trial with the potential for a larger rollout across Europe; Eat Happy operates as individual restaurants or independent kiosks within major grocery store chains in over 2500 locations across six countries. Showcasing Waygu at TED2023 Waygu’s launch in Germany coincides with Wamame Foods’ partnership at next week’s TED2023 flagship conference in Vancouver. After a hugely successful introduction at last year’s TED2022 (where Elon Musk and Al Gore tasted Waygu), the world’s top business leaders, tech innovators, and A-list celebrities will be able to try Waygu beef’s plant-based alternative at this year’s TED event, …

Organisations and Brands:Wamame Foods

Subway Beyond Meatball

Subway Beyond Meatball ©Subway

The UK’s Fast Food Chains Ranked For Plant-Based Friendly Credentials

April 21, 2023April 17, 2023

ProVeg has ranked the plant-based friendliness of the top-five fast-food chains in the UK, taking into account their selection of vegan options along with the clarity of their menu presentation and labelling. Burger King is in first place, largely due to its range of nine fully plant-based main meals. These include the Vegan Chicken Royale, Plant-Based Whopper, and Vegan Nuggets. Plant-based bacon made by La Vie has also been a permanent menu fixture at the chain since the beginning of the year. In second place is Subway, which was recognised for clearly labelling plant-based options with the VE symbol and allowing customers to create their own vegan sandwiches. Options include the Meatless Meatball Marinara and the T.L.C (Tastes Like Chicken). McDonald’s takes the third …

Organisations and Brands:Burger King ProVeg subway