Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

McDonald's is adding plant-based burgers to the menu

usatoday.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

91–100 of 577 posts

Re: McDonald's is adding plant-based burgers to the menu

#91

Post by boruto »

Nbox9 wrote: post #58

I think it’ll be a big win when plant-based burgers are cheaper than animal based burgers. From a raw ingredients standpoint plant based food should almost always be cheaper than animal based food because the costs associated with farming plants is lower than the costs associated with farming animals. Hopefully, with McDonald’s scale and with their vertical integration they can make affordable, tasty, and comparably…

You should visit india. Vegetarian food is always a bit cheaper than meat and poultry.

Re: McDonald's is adding plant-based burgers to the menu

#92

Post by Nbox9 »

ApolloFortyNine wrote: post #89
Nbox9 wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The meat (and dairy) industry receive massive subsidies from the the US federal government, and they have massive externalized costs. Some externalized costs are greenhouse gas emissions, downstream downstream pollution, reduced health outcomes in consumers, heavy fresh water usage. The meat & dairy industry received the majority of the benefit from the $867 billion farm bill passed in 2019.

>The meat & dairy industry received the majority of the benefit from the $867 billion farm bill passed in 2019. No, they didn't. The majority of the 10 year funding bill went to SNAP (food stamps). [1] I do hate how I have to waste my time researching your ridiculous claims, I do wish such extreme takes could just be out right deleted before they cause any damage. [1] https://www.cnbc.com/2018/12/11/massive-867-billi…

What percentage of SNAP funding is spent on foodstuff with animal products in it? Over a quarter of the average American food budget is spent on meat and diary directly, with more being spent on products that contain meat and dairy. It’s safe to assume SNAP spending is similar.

https://www.valuepenguin.com/how-much-we-spend-food

Re: McDonald's is adding plant-based burgers to the menu

#93

Post by dragonwriter »

Nbox9 wrote: post #58

I think it’ll be a big win when plant-based burgers are cheaper than animal based burgers. From a raw ingredients standpoint plant based food should almost always be cheaper than animal based food because the costs associated with farming plants is lower than the costs associated with farming animals. Hopefully, with McDonald’s scale and with their vertical integration they can make affordable, tasty, and comparably…

> Hopefully, with McDonald’s scale and with their vertical integration they can make affordable, tasty, and comparably healthy veggie burgers a reality.

McDonald's hasn't even made tasty meat burgers a reality, so that's asking a bit much.

OTOH, I supect McDonald's will continue to harvest as much of a premium as the market will bear from anyone with special dietary preferences that they cater to, including vegetarians, regardless of underlying food costs. Now, if there is lots of competition in serving vegetarian fast-food, then there will be pressure to bring the price down to the extent costs support it.

Re: McDonald's is adding plant-based burgers to the menu

#94

Post by adrian_mrd »

Nbox9 wrote: post #58

I think it’ll be a big win when plant-based burgers are cheaper than animal based burgers. From a raw ingredients standpoint plant based food should almost always be cheaper than animal based food because the costs associated with farming plants is lower than the costs associated with farming animals. Hopefully, with McDonald’s scale and with their vertical integration they can make affordable, tasty, and comparably…

A good way to think of this problem is that there are two solutions:

Option A, farmers continue to receive government subsidies, or, Option B, consumers pay the ‘real’ price for food (which factors in the cost of externalities eg climate change, no factory farms, etc)

Re: McDonald's is adding plant-based burgers to the menu

#95

Post by Spivak »

imwally wrote: post #32
werber wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Vegans will be concerned about shared grill space, I know that was a big issue for friends for mine with Burger King's Impossible implentation

This used to be a concern for me earlier on in my vegan years but I soon realized that veganism isn't about eating a "pure" diet, it's about the animals. The best thing for the animals is for these products to sell and I shouldn't let a little cross contamination deter me from that.

Yep, I call myself a "mostly plants" person because of this. When buying and cooking for myself I avoid meat and animal products but I felt like it was wrong to waste food just because it was meat.

Re: McDonald's is adding plant-based burgers to the menu

#96

Post by bigbubba »

elicash wrote: post #24
reaperducer wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

McDonald's already has the omnivore market. It's trying to bring in the herbivores, so McPlant makes it obvious.

There are omnivores like me that are excited about plant-based burgers yet feel silly ordering a "McPlant." I'm so self-conscious that if I'm at a Denny's I won't order a "Moon Over My Hammy." I'm aware the person taking the order doesn't care and hears these menu names a thousand times a day and still have that aversion. Are there more than a tiny number of us? I don't know. That said, this is another benefit of the…

I absolutely hate all the cutesy trademarks businesses expect you to use. I don't want a 'Mc' anything, just give me a 'number 5 Burger.' And fuck all the bullshit terms these corporations use instead of small/medium/large. These are all attempts by their marketers to worm their corporate language into your brain.

Re: McDonald's is adding plant-based burgers to the menu

#97

Post by dragonwriter »

Daishiman wrote: post #70
ttul wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder to what extent farming subsidies and implicit subsidies such as the under pricing of carbon emissions make meat burgers less expensive than they ought to be.

If you priced the externalities, plant-based food is an order of magnitude cheaper, at the very least.

If you priced the externalities in fossil fuels would be cost prohibitive, but a sizable political faction, particularly in the US, views Pigovian taxes as equivalent to totalitarian Communism, and an influential if anti-scientific set of economic viewpoints views externalities as either unreal or not practically subject to internalization.

So, I wouldn't hold your breath.

Re: McDonald's is adding plant-based burgers to the menu

#99

Post by bigbubba »

reaperducer wrote: post #49
abawany wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I similarly refuse to use Starbucks' cute-isms for cup sizes (Venti, etc.) but I won't have any trouble ordering a McPlant - it might even provide me another reason to visit a McD beyond the wireless-for-the-price-of-a-coffee reason.

Starbucks' cute-isms for cup sizes (Venti, etc.) Most people misunderstand Starbucks size names. They think they're all smart assuming that Starbucks calls a small drink "tall" because of marketing or whatever. But it's actually the too-cool-for-school crowd that is wrong. "Short" is in the shortest cup. It's the small size. "Tall" is the taller cup. It's the regular size. "Grande" is the large size. "Grande" means "…

Fuck all that shit, no other business uses those terms because they are specifically Starbucks corp's attempt to be cute, despite what you may think. Who the fuck in America says 'venti' instead of extra large? Nobody except Starbucks and their customers, so cut the shit.

Re: McDonald's is adding plant-based burgers to the menu

#100

Post by Scene_Cast2 »

adrian_mrd wrote: post #94
Nbox9 wrote: post #58

I think it’ll be a big win when plant-based burgers are cheaper than animal based burgers. From a raw ingredients standpoint plant based food should almost always be cheaper than animal based food because the costs associated with farming plants is lower than the costs associated with farming animals. Hopefully, with McDonald’s scale and with their vertical integration they can make affordable, tasty, and comparably…

A good way to think of this problem is that there are two solutions: Option A, farmers continue to receive government subsidies, or, Option B, consumers pay the ‘real’ price for food (which factors in the cost of externalities eg climate change, no factory farms, etc)

It is strategically important for a country to be able to feed itself (vs importing food). Farm subsidies are the current method that enables this.

At least that's what the internet told me, I have no insight into that industry.

Post reply on HN