Burger King has been selling its meatless Impossible Whopper for just a few short months now, and a lawsuit has already resulted. The fast food giant advertises the plant-based burger as “100% Whopper, 0% Beef.” The burger is typically prepared with mayonnaise — a non-vegan condiment that contains eggs, but Burger King notes on its website that the burger can be prepared without mayonnaise, upon request. In smaller print, the company’s website also notes that guests who want a completely meat-free meal can request that their Impossible Whopper be prepared on a broiler separate from where beef and chicken products are cooked. Still, one Georgia man has filed a lawsuit claiming false advertising.
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According to the complaint filed on Monday, Phillip Williams said he ordered an Impossible Whopper from a Burger King in Atlanta. He believed that when prepared without mayonnaise, he was getting a vegan meal, which aligned with his “strict vegan diet.” The lawsuit alleges that Williams was not aware the meatless burger was “cooked on the same grill as its traditional meat-based products, creating a meat-free patty that is in fact covered in meat by-product.”
The lawsuit goes on to say that had Williams known that the Impossible Whopper “was contaminated with meat by-product” he would not have purchased it. Williams is seeking compensatory damages, as well as a jury trial and an injunction to stop the fast food company from preparing Impossible Whoppers on the same broiler it prepares meat products.
It should be noted that Burger King never advertised the meatless patty as a vegan option. According to Burger King’s parent company, RBI Inc., around 90% of customers who ordered the Impossible Whopper during its trail run were meat eaters.
The lawsuit places a lot of emphasis on meat by-product, but what about the actual ingredients in the Impossible Whopper? The meatless patty is made up of GMO soy protein, coconut oil, sunflower oil and heme, derived from genetically engineered yeast. In the U.S., consumers are increasingly seeking out wholesome, real, minimally processed food. The Impossible Burger is the opposite — a highly processed fake food — but one that's disguised as something good for you.