MUMBAI/CHENNAI ¨C At McDonald¡¯s outlets in South India, a 30-cent burger topping has been selling out fast. It¡¯s not extra cheese or a fancy salsa dip, but a vegetarian protein slice developed with Indian government food scientists ¡ª the brand¡¯s first such offering globally.
McDonald¡¯s has joined India¡¯s biggest dairy Amul, a slew of startups and a company backed by Bollywood superstar Ranveer Singh to unleash a marketing blitz with celebrity chefs and cricketers promoting protein as a daily nutrition need for young and old, not just a gym fad.
Ordering kiosks at the Golden Arches do not mention calories but lure consumers by flashing the high protein in burgers, tapping into a sudden craze in a nation with the world¡¯s highest number of vegetarians and low meat consumption.
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