Trends in Availability and Nutritional Profile of Meat-Based Versus Meat-Free Menu Items in 75 Large Chain Restaurants in the United States, 2013–2021

Introduction

Chain restaurants are ubiquitous in the U.S. While restaurants are increasingly promoting health- and climate-conscious menu options, few studies have examined whether restaurants are increasing availability of menu items with lower climate impact and whether these offerings are healthier. This study examines trends in the availability and nutritional profile of food items featuring different meat sources on menus at 75 large chain restaurants in the U.S. from 2013 to 2021.

Methods

Longitudinal data on menu items from 75 large U.S. chain restaurants from 2013 to 2021 were obtained from MenuStat.org, an online database of menu items from the largest-grossing restaurant chains in the U.S. Annual counts and proportions of food items featuring different meat sources were calculated overall, by food category, and by restaurant type. Differences in predicted mean calories between meat-based items and meat-free items were calculated (overall, by restaurant type, by year) using linear regression models with clustered standard errors.

Results

Availability and calorie content of meat-based versus meat-free items were generally stable over time. Availability of chicken-containing items increased and there was an absolute reduction in the availability of beef-containing menu items (p-trends<0.001). Total calories and calories from protein, unsaturated fat, and saturated fat were lower among meat-free items versus meat-based items. However, calories from sugar were higher for meat-free items.

Conclusions

While meat-free items had fewer calories and some aspects of nutritional profile were more favorable, the availability of meat-free menu items has not increased in large chain restaurants, suggesting limited improvement on reducing climate impact.