Sanitarium Health Food Company in Australia, a major health food arm of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, has sold more than 1.8 million vegetarian patties to McDonald's Australia.
Sanitarium Health Food Company in Australia, a major health food arm of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, has sold more than 1.8 million vegetarian patties to McDonald’s Australia. The Australian restaurant group launched a new “Salads Plus” menu in August that included the vegetarian “burger” option.
“We are delighted that McDonald’s has created a range of lighter, healthier food choices and taken the additional step of providing nutrition labeling on products,” says Dale Williams, Sanitarium’s general manager for business development. “We believe McDonald’s has shown a leading example in providing alternative food choices in the quick service restaurant industry.”
The “Salads Plus” menu items all feature 10 grams of fat or less per serving and offer customers a wider selection to choose from. The new menu appears to be one of McDonald’s most successful new initiatives of 2003, already accounting for 10 percent of the company’s total sales.
Sanitarium says they are excited to be involved with McDonald’s in bringing nutritious food to the general public. With rising obesity rates in Australia and elsewhere, both firms say they saw a need within the fast food service industry for genuinely healthy alternatives.
Sanitarium has increased production of the veggie burger for McDonald’s as a result of higher demand. Sanitarium, whose mission is to improve the community’s well-being, is Australia’s best-selling health food brand. The company provides services ranging from nutrition advice to giving products free of charge to the community.
