Yum Brands’ KFC Thailand has worked with Charoen Pokphand Foods’ (CPF) Meat Zero team to create plant-based fried chicken menus aimed at attracting customers who are more conscientious about healthy eating and sustainability. The products, formulated to deliver the taste of real meat, are now being tested at two KFC Green Stores in Bangkok and Chachoengsao.
Waewkanee Assoratgoon, general manager of KFC for Yum Restaurants International (Thailand) Co., Ltd., said that the increasing popularity of plant-based diets has been on the rise in Thailand and other countries, encouraging KFC to present innovative alternative plant-based menus.
Consumer taste trials have shown that CPF’s “Meat Zero” branded plant-based chicken offers the look, taste, texture and aroma of real meat. The product is prepared with KFC recipes adapted for the Thai market.
“Opting for Meat Zero as the material for our plant-based Chicken Pop and Spicy Rice Bowl, we can create very delicious products. Consumers will barely notice that the chicken substitute they are eating is made from plants,” said Waewkanee. “Whenever they want to skip real meat, they can come to us and they will still enjoy the familiar delicacy.”
Noting that the Meat Zero concept has garnered favorable response from consumers, Charoen Pokphand Foods CEO Prasit Boondoungprasert added that the product’s incorporation into KFC Green Store menus coincides with CPF’s aspiration to create food innovations that are “both friendly to the environment and satisfying to the vegans and flexitarians on their quest to reduce consumption of animal meat.”
