McDonald’s menu adds vegan burger; a passport is required to try it – for now

McDonald’s has added vegan burger to its lineup, but an oversees trip is required to taste it.

The Big Vegan TS is now available in its restaurants in Germany, the fast-food chain announced on its German website.

“We want to take responsibility and follow new, innovative paths,” McDonald’s said in a translated statement on http://www.mcdonalds.de. “That’s exactly what we prove with the Big Vegan TS. For the first time, McDonald’s offers a vegan burger across Germany – and even at McMenu.”

While the global fast-food giant already has vegan burgers in other countries and plant-based options are growing here, McDonald’s has not announced plans for a meatless burger in the U.S.

“Markets decide what’s best for their customers and the launch of the Big Vegan TS in Germany is the latest example of that,” the company said in a statement to USA TODAY Thursday.

Burger King announced in April that it was testing the new Impossible Whopper in St. Louis restaurants. Four weeks later, Burger King said the test was successful and that it was expanding the pilot to additional markets and targeting a national release for later this year.

Interest in author Kathy Freston’s 5-year-old Change.org petition that asks McDonald’s to add a vegan burger in the U.S., started growing after Burger King’s announcement. It now has more than 200,000 signatures.

“Germany is one of McDonald’s largest international markets so the introduction of the Big Vegan TS there is a great sign for the prospects of a similar U.S. item,” said Tegan Gregory, a senior campaigner at Change.org, in a statement to USA TODAY. “It’s encouraging to see an iconic restaurant brand catering to modern diets and we hope to see a similar announcement at McDonald’s shareholders’ meeting on May 23.”