Taco Bell franchisees may see a rise in vegetarian customers as Taco Bell launches its new “Veggie Mode” on March 12th. “Veggie Mode” is a single-swipe feature on self-service kiosks that only shows the restaurant’s vegetarian offerings. The items on Taco Bell’s “Veggie Mode” include Taco Bell’s nearly fifty American Vegetarian Association (AVA)-certified items.
In a press release, Taco Bell noted it also expanded the amount of AVA-certified vegetarian ingredients available on its menu. The increase allows patrons to fully customize their orders in “Veggie Mode” with over 20 million possible vegetarian combinations.
The new veggie feature also allows customers to instantly order vegetarian versions of Taco Bell Classics. Taco Bell noted in “Veggie Mode” customers can transform the following items with the push of a button–
- Beefy 5-Layer Burrito to the Layered Vegetarian Burrito
- Chalupa Supreme to the Black Bean Chalupa Supreme
- Chicken Soft Taco tot he Black Bean Soft Taco
Building on a Vegetarian Friendly Reputation
Taco Bell’s Global Nutrition & Sustainability Manager, Missy Schapphok, RDN provided comment on the news in the press release. “We’ve been doing vegetarian for a long time, but that is not enough for us. People should be given more options than one plant-based choice [. . . .]” “At Taco Bell, celebrating vegetarian is more than just a trend, it is something we do every day of the week. With Veggie Mode, we are proud to make it even easier to order plant-based options that vegetarians and non-vegetarians can agree are delicious.”
Franchisees can almost certainly expect a bump from vegetarian customers as Veggie Mode builds on Taco Bell’s current vegetarian cult-following. According to Taco Bell, Veggie Mode is another extension of Taco Bell’s leadership in food and digital innovation. The company intends to establish plant-based offerings as a sustained focus area for the brand moving forward. In 2019, Taco Bell introduced its first-ever dedicated vegetarian menu board.
Taco Bell stated its goal to be the top QSR for vegetarians in early 2020.
According to Taco Bell’s parent company, YUM Brands!, Taco Bell and 350 franchise organizations operate over 7,000 restaurants. Taco Bell serves more than 40 million customers each week in the U.S. Internationally, the brand has nearly 500 restaurants across almost 30 countries.
For more information on “Veggie Mode” and how to use it, check out Taco Bell’s How to Eat Vegetarian Blog.
