You'll Have To Hop The Pond If You Want An All-Vegan McDonald's Meal

Running out of options to cook for your vegan friends who insist on crashing the dinner party? Great news, Brits! Starting next month, you can just swing by Mickey D's and grab your pals a Veggie Dippers meal!*

What, pray tell, are Veggie Dippers? The BBC reports that they're dippable nuggets made of red pepper, rice, sundried tomato pesto, and split peas, covered in breadcrumbs, and fried. The meal includes vegan-friendly fries and a soda. According to the Vegan Society, there's no cross-contamination in the vegan-friendly fries, nor the Veggie Dippers themselves, making the meal totally vegan. (McDonalds' P.L.T., which was tested in North America, is plant-based but not completely vegan — it's got cheese and is cooked on the same grill as meat patties.)

The Veggie Dipper meal seems to be a response to a very simple thing: demand. According to the BBC, McDonald's had seen an 80% increase in U.K. customers ordering vegetarian options. Perhaps fast food customers are also expecting meatless options, given the cascade of Impossible products we've seen from massive chains including Burger King, Dunkin', and KFC. The P.L.T. was tested for twelve weeks in Canada this fall, though it's unclear whether it'll become a permanent menu addition. Many American and British customers continue to campaign to add the McVegan to their menus, an all-vegan burger available only in Scandinavia.

My immediate reaction is: wow, I hate the phrase "Veggie Dippers." But then again, is it really any different than Chicken Nuggets? Do I only hate "Veggie Dippers" because I've spent 30 years with "Chicken Nuggets"? Nuggets is an objectively gross word, in sound and imagery. But Dippers is so infantilizing, like it belongs in a school lunch snack pack. Anyway, sound off in the comments.

*This is truly terrible etiquette. Get over yourself and get creative with beans.