Vegan McPlant Goes Nationwide in Every McDonald's Across the UK and Ireland

McDonald's has today (Wednesday, January 5) put its fully vegan McPlant burger on the menu in every one of its restaurants across the UK and Ireland, just in time for Veganuary.

The burger first appeared in 10 restaurants in Coventry on September 29 last year, then expanded to more than 250 sites on October 13. The trial clearly went well. McDonald's UK and Ireland is calling the national launch "officially... everywhere!", and you can now walk into any branch from Penzance to Dublin and order one.

Michelle Graham-Clare, Chief Marketing Officer of McDonald's UK and Ireland, said: "We're so pleased that our McPlant is now officially 'everywhere' and available for more of our customers to taste and enjoy. We saw a remarkable response to the trial period back in October and now McPlant is on the high-street, in retail parks and service stations all over the UK and Ireland so all of our customers will be able to try it."

The patty was co-developed with Beyond Meat, the cheese slice is made from pea protein, and the burger comes with an all-new vegan sauce. Crucially, the UK and Ireland version is accredited as vegan by the Vegetarian Society, unlike the McPlant sold in Austria, which used dairy cheese. It costs £3.59 on its own or £4.89 as a meal, and it's cooked separately from the beef burgers using its own utensils.

When the burger was unveiled in September, Graham-Clare said the company had taken its time getting it right:

We're so pleased to be finally launching McPlant in the U.K. and Ireland. As with every McDonald's offering, we take our time to ensure it meets the highest standards and is something that all our customers will enjoy. We are always looking for different ways to innovate and meet our customers' needs, and with McPlant we have a delicious plant-based burger that will appeal to everyone. Whether you're vegan or just fancy a plant-based patty, we're confident you will enjoy the McPlant.

That last line is the important one. The McPlant isn't aimed at the few vegans who already avoid fast food. It's aimed at the millions of people who pop into McDonald's every week and might pick a plant-based burger simply because it's there and it tastes good. That's how habits change.

And the stakes are high. The landmark Oxford University study published in PNAS found that a global shift to plant-based eating could save more than 8 million lives by 2050 and slash food-related greenhouse gas emissions. Every McPlant ordered instead of a beef burger is a small vote for that future.

This is the moment we've been waiting for since McDonald's first announced the McPlant in 2020, and since it landed in its first UK restaurants last autumn. It follows Burger King UK's pledge of a 50% meat-free menu by 2030, KFC launching a vegan burger across the UK and Greggs' vegan sausage roll sending profits soaring. It's the plant-based revolution Google predicted, served with fries.

Happy Veganuary, everyone. The Golden Arches have gone green.