Burger King Is Making This Major Upgrade to Its Food

Burger King is continuing on its mission to win back customers and position itself as America's second-largest burger chain again, after being dethroned by Wendy's this year. During an August earnings call, the company announced plans for major upgrades to the menu, restaurant design, and even digital experience. And now the chain is taking a further step in a new, healthy direction.

According to a press release, Burger King is banning as many as 120 artificial and potentially harmful ingredients from its menu items as part of its ongoing commitment to serving real food. While everything from burgers to sauces and sides is getting a recipe makeover, fans need not worry about the taste of their BK favorites—the chain has stated the taste of their food will not be compromised in any way.

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Burger King's commitment to real food started several years ago when it vowed to remove colors, flavors, and preservatives derived from artificial sources from the menu as a whole. For those who wish to know more about the chain's health initiative, the growing list of banned ingredients can be found here.

"We know our guests' expectations are changing, and they want to make choices they can feel good about," said Ellie Doty, Chief Marketing Officer of Burger King North America. "By banning these 120 ingredients from our food, we're offering guests an easy choice—delicious food made with quality ingredients."

To help spread the word about their new and healthier food, Burger King is taking a page from McDonald's and enlisting celebrities and their meal endorsements. To that end, rapper Nelly, singer Larissa Machado, and TikTok celebrity Lil Huddy are all getting a meal named after them. Here's what the Keep It Real Meals consist of:

The Cornell Haynes Jr Meal aka Nelly—the classic flame-grilled Whopper topped with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, mayo, and ketchup; small fries; and a small Sprite.
The Larissa Machado Meal aka Anitta—the Impossible Whopper with lettuce, tomato, pickles, ketchup and mustard; small fries; and a small Sprite.
The Chase Hudson Meal aka LilHuddy—a hand-breaded Spicy Ch'King with cheese, 4 piece mozzarella sticks, and a 16-ounce chocolate shake.

burger king all meals — Courtesy of Burger King

The meals are launching at participating U.S. locations on September 12 and will be available for a limited time. Those who sign up for the chain's loyalty program via the Burger King app can take advantage of a deal that'll get them any of the meals for $6.

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