The McPlant has officially left the building, and honestly, the timing couldn't be more on-brand for 2024.
McDonald's confirmed this week that its plant-based burger experiment is done at the few test locations that still carried it, quietly closing the book on a product that was supposed to revolutionize fast food.
For those who missed it, the McPlant rolled out to fanfare in 2021, a Beyond Meat patty dressed up with the usual lettuce, tomato, pickle, onion, and a vegan sauce that nobody could confirm actually tasted like anything.
It tested in a handful of markets, got a limited nationwide push, and then just sort of… existed.
Like a gym membership you keep paying for out of guilt.
Analysts pegged the McPlant at a tiny sliver of sales, and customers apparently treated it less like a menu item and more like a dare.
You don't walk into a McDonald's at 11 p.m. craving a plant-based patty.
You walk in craving a Big Mac and a side of regret.
Here's the thing nobody at corporate wants to admit out loud: the McPlant was never really for McDonald's customers.
It was for investors, for ESG reports, for the vibe.
It existed so the company could point at something green during earnings calls and say, "See?
We're evolving." Meanwhile, the actual humans pulling into the drive-thru were ordering McDoubles like the McPlant was a rumor.
A plant-based burger that costs more than a Quarter Pounder with cheese is a tough sell to a country that just spent the last four years complaining about the price of eggs.
Value is the entire game right now, and the McPlant was the opposite of value.
It was a premium product for a customer base that wants two for six bucks.
The broader plant-based bust isn't just a McDonald's problem, either.
Beyond Meat's stock has been in freefall, layoffs have hit the sector, and the whole "fake meat will replace beef" narrative has aged like milk left in a hot car.
Turns out Americans will eat a lot of weird stuff, but they're not paying extra for a burger that reminds them of a veggie patty they got tricked into at a cookout in 2019.
McDonald's will keep leaning on chicken, breakfast, and whatever limited-time stunt it can throw at TikTok.
The McPlant joins the graveyard of fast-food ideas that sounded great in a boardroom and died in a drive-thru.
RIP to a burger that nobody asked for and even fewer people ordered.
The real lesson here is simple: if you want to sell a plant-based burger in America, don't hide it on a menu behind a Big Mac and charge more for it.
Either commit to the bit or stick to what works.
Final Thoughts
McDonald's chose the latter, and honestly, the fries were always the vegetarian option anyway.