After visiting a Burger King restaurant in Atlanta and feasting on an Impossible Whopper, a vegan learned the new meatless sandwich was cooked on the same grill as the 100% meat sandwiches. Now, he plans to sue the popular burger joint.
When Burger King announced the arrival of its Impossible Whopper, vegans around the country finally had a menu item to dive into at the fast-food joint…or so they thought. Contrary to the Impossible Whopper’s tagline, which reads “100% Whopper, 0% Beef,” a new lawsuit filed by a vegan claims the Impossible Whopper he ate at an Atlanta Burger King was cooked on the same grill as the meat whoppers.
For those who don’t know, the Impossible Whopper is a vegan alternative to the widely popular Whopper sandwich. The recent lawsuit was filed by Phillip Williams in South Florida on Monday. According to Williams, he purchased an Impossible Whopper at an Atlanta Burger King drive-thru after reading about the new sandwich and all of its vegan goodness online. However, soon after his meal, he learned the Impossible Whoppers are all cooked on the “same grills as the meat” whoppers. Shocked, he alleges that there was “no signage on his trip to warn him that his burger would be cooked on the same grills as the meat, nor was he notified by any staff before he ate it.”
As a result, he claims he was duped by Burger King and said he “wouldn’t have paid for the premium-priced burger if he had known that it was covered in meat by-products.” It’s important to note the Impossible Whopper costs about $1 more than the traditional Whopper sandwich. When asked about why he decided to sue Burger King, Williams said he wants to take the fast-food chain to “court on behalf of all vegans and vegetarians who have similarly bought the product under false pretenses.” Additionally, he wants Burger King to disclose that the “Impossible Whopper is cooked on the same grill as its other meat when advertising the burger.”
How has Burger King responded to the allegations? Well, on the restaurant’s website, near an advertisement for the company’s Impossible Whopper, is the following notice:
“For guests looking for a meat-free option, a non-broiler method of preparation is available upon request.”
This isn’t the first time the Impossible burger has come under fire. Earlier this year, Impossible Foods released a report saying “an ingredient in its burger was tested on rats, causing controversy over whether it can truly be vegan if it is tested on animals.” However, it’s important to note that many vegetables today are grown using manure and other animal byproducts, so one could argue that it’s already difficult to tell if vegan dishes made with vegetables are truly 100% vegan to begin with.
Sources:
Man sues Burger King for cooking vegan burger and meat on same grill
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