Fast Food Chains Competing for Customers and the End of McPlant

McDonald’s, Burger King, and other fast-food chains are relying on combo promotions to regain customers. In the U.S., McDonald’s has introduced a new $5 meal to compete with Burger King and Starbucks, which are offering customers four drinks for $20. The restaurant industry is striving to win back customers who have been put off by rising inflation, following three years of rapidly increasing menu prices that have impacted the fast-food sector. McDonald’s prices for items like the Big Mac sandwich have surged by 21% from 2019 levels to $5.29, while ten chicken McNuggets now cost about $9.19, marking a 28% increase from five years ago. Overall, traffic has fallen by 3.3% this year compared to the same period last year, according to data from Black Box Intelligence. 

Due to low customer demand, McDonald’s is discontinuing some of its healthier menu items in the U.S., including the McPlant burger, a plant-based patty, and all its salads. The McPlant, a result of a collaboration between McDonald’s and Beyond Meat, was added to the menu in 2021. According to Mintel, the U.S. plant-based meat market is projected to decline by 3.6% in 2023 compared to the previous year.

Seven-Eleven Japan Co., Ltd., a Japanese convenience store chain, is introducing food offerings to the U.S. market, including tonkatsu ramen and spicy miso ramen. The traditional model of Seven-Eleven stores in the U.S. has primarily focused on tobacco and gasoline, but with both markets in decline, the chain is shifting its focus to food offerings.