March/April (Revised)

A January Industry Insights
report from Technomic revealed
mushroom-topped burgers as a
key menu offering appearing at
Canadian quick-serve burger chains.
During the winter months, brands
such as Harvey’s and Wendy’s
featured limited-time offers on
cheesy mushroom-melt burgers —
capitalizing on customers’ affinity for
comfort foods. As the report highlights,
both of these offerings were
“chock full of umami elements and
premium descriptors.”
grown lettuce. And, Harvey notes, we can
expect to see other top players follow suit.
As Technomic highlighted in its 2021
Global Trends Outlook, rather than focus on
new menu development during the pandemic,
many operators focused on upgrading menu
favourites. Even pre-pandemic, this trend saw
McDonald’s Canada re-vamp how its burgers
are prepared and served in 2019. And, last
March, A&W Foodservices of Canada committed
to moving to 100-per-cent Canadian
grass-fed and -finished beef. In September,
the company met the milestone of serving all
grass-fed beef across Canada and is working
toward sourcing exclusively from Canada.
These changes also play into the value
Canadian consumers place on local sourcing,
which has only been heightened by the
pandemic. Technomic research reveals 51
per cent of Canadians are buying from local
restaurants as a way to support the community.
And, consumers increasingly expecting restaurants
to source local ingredients and products.
Beef and Beyond
With regard to burgers, today’s consumers
aren’t beholden to beef. An ever-growing
range of dietary preferences, as well as desire
for variety, have helped drive demand for
burgers featuring a range of proteins. A prime
example, plant-based burgers ranked 11th on
DoorDash’s list of the most popular delivery
dishes in Canada during the first half of 2020
and made it to the Top-10 list of three provinces
(fifth in both Quebec and Ontario; sixth
in P.E.I.), while traditional beef burgers were
notably absent from the national Top-20 list.
“Over the last five years, we’ve seen more
of a move towards the vegetarian-based patty,”
shares Miller, who notes The WORKS’ Beyond
Meat burgers constitute about eight-per-cent of
the chain’s sales. “We also have our portobello
mushroom cap and The WORKS vegetarian
burger, so we have three [patty] options that
are fully vegetarian. We also launched Canada’s
first vegan bacon cheeseburger last year.”
The WORKS offers a wide range of burger
patties, which also includes a variety of beefbased
options, chicken breast, the brand’s signature
elk patty and crispy chicken. “We want
to [offer] the ultimate gourmet-burger experience
for any palette,” explains Miller, noting
the classic beef patty is the brand’s number-1
seller, followed by wagyu beef and the Beyond
Meat patty.
Kirbiyik agrees orders over the past year
PLANT-BASED
OPTIONS HAVE NEVER
BEEN MORE RELEVANT.
AS THE #1 FROZEN
MEAT ALTERNATIVE
BRAND 1 , GARDEIN
OFFERS A VARIETY
OF DELICIOUS PLANT-BASED
OPTIONS TO SATISFY ALL.
12 G of protein
per serving
Vegan &
Kosher
3 delicious
flavours
GREAT FOR BREAKFAST SANDWICHES, WRAPS OR AS A SIDE!
www.gardein.ca
© CONAGRA BRANDS CANADA INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
16 *Original FOODSERVICE flavour AND available HOSPITALITY in a food MARCH/APRIL service format. 2021 For more information please visit conagrafoodservice.ca.
The Best New FOODSERVICEANDHOSPITALITY.COM
Product Awards logo is a trademark of
Source 1: Nielsen, MarketTrack, National Grocery + Drug + Mass Merchandisers, 52 weeks ending October 31, 2020.
Best New Product Awards Inc., used under license.