Could Gen Z Kill Off the American Hamburger?

Newsweek

3 days ago

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
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The hamburger could be on its way out as its spotlight seems to be being taken over by the rise of chicken sandwiches.
Experts who spoke to Newsweek attribute this shift in consumer demand in part to Gen Z's growing interest in sustainability and health.
Between 2019 and 2024, approximately 2,800 chicken restaurants opened in the United States, while about 1,200 burger joints shut down, according to The Sunday Times, citing Circana's 2025 trends report.
During the same time frame, the consumption of fried chicken sandwiches in restaurants increased by 19 percent nationwide, while the consumption of hamburgers declined by 3 percent.
Visits to chicken restaurants have also been outpacing consumer trips to other fast-food and fast-casual restaurants, increasing by 4.3 percent year-over-year in the third quarter of 2024, according to the trends research firm Placer.ai.
Chicken chains also outperformed other restaurants in 2024 in the hamburger category, according to Circana's 2025 Definitive U.S. Restaurant Ranking Report.
To qualify for Circana's Top 50 ranking, a restaurant must have an annual consumer spending of more than $1.35 billion, and McDonald's and Chick-fil-A, both of which sell chicken sandwiches, were two of the restaurants leading the way, generating over $100 billion.
Photo-illustration by Newsweek/Getty
Commenting on the shifting preferences, McDonald's told Newsweek that "chicken remains a major priority for McDonald's."
The fast-food chain also pointed Newsweek to CEO Chris Kempczinski's recent message that McDonald's was "excited about the significant opportunity we see within our chicken portfolio and see the potential to add another point of chicken market share by the end of 2026."
Kempczinski spoke about the success of the McCrispy, one of the company's chicken sandwiches, which he said is "now in over 70 markets."
McDonald's also recently launched the new McCrispy Strips, stating, "We've been listening to our fans on social and beyond, and they have made one thing clear: they want more chicken."
The company told Newsweek that it is "exploring exciting chicken LTOs - like the popular Chicken Big Mac that hit U.S. restaurants for a limited time in 2024."
Major chicken chains have also noticed this growing demand for chicken burgers, and Amy Alarcon, vice president of Culinary Innovations at Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, told Newsweek: "Our chicken sandwiches continue to be a standout menu item for us, they've truly become a cornerstone of the Popeyes line up."
She said that since Popeyes launched its chicken sandwich in 2019, they have seen "consistent demand and strong guest loyalty."
Alarcon added that they've also expanded the category with "flavor innovations like our Pickle Glazed Chicken Sandwich, which brought a bold flavor twist and drove a lot of excitement."
"The appetite for high-quality chicken sandwiches hasn't slowed down, it's only growing," Alarcon said.
She added that she thought the growing demand for chicken sandwiches was because flavors can be more creative compared to traditional beef burgers.
"The rise of global flavors and premium ingredients has opened up creative territory in the chicken space that's harder to achieve with traditional hamburgers," she said.
Given consumers' increasing appetite for chicken sandwiches over burgers, Alarcon said this trend has "reinforced our commitment to continuing innovation in this space.
"We're exploring new formats, flavors and builds that stay true to our Louisiana roots but also push boundaries in craveable, exciting and unexpected ways."
More broadly, the consumption of chicken has been increasing in the United States, while consumption of beef has declined, as illustrated in the graph below.
Discussing the reasons behind the growing consumer demand for chicken over beef, Harry M. Kaiser, a professor of applied economics and management at Cornell University, told Newsweek that, firstly, "chicken is a lot less expensive than beef."
"In 2024, the average price of beef was a little over $8 per pound, while the average price of chicken was just under $2 per pound," he said.
Secondly, chicken is considered "healthier than beef, and people have become more health-conscious over time," Kaiser said. He added that this could be why a switch to chicken is happening among products like hamburgers, "which have a higher fat content."
As the country becomes increasingly weight-conscious, with the rise of weight-loss drugs like Ozempic, more Americans seem to be choosing chicken over beef, Jill J. McCluskey, director of the School of Economic Sciences at Washington State University, told Newsweek.
She said that she is currently researching "how consumers' grocery store purchases change after starting GLP-1 drugs, for example Ozempic, and chicken purchases increase after the consumer starts these drugs."
There also appears to be a sustainability factor behind America's changing consumer demands, as there is "a perception that burgers are unhealthy and bad for the environment," McCluskey said, adding that "chicken is perceived as more sustainable and healthier."
This is particularly relevant for Gen Z, she added, as "Gen Z consumers care more about sustainability than past generations."
In a 2020 study by First Insight, Inc., 73 percent of Gen Z participants surveyed indicated that they would pay more for sustainable items, with the majority also willing to pay a 10 percent price premium.
Gen Z's passion for sustainability was also highlighted in a 2024 report by Innova Market Insights, which found that 34 percent of Gen Z reported being concerned about the planet's health, the highest percentage among any generation surveyed in the report.
Kaiser also noted that Gen Z tends to prefer chicken over beef, adding that "younger people eat less meat, and a lot less beef than older generations."
According to findings from Technomic's Q4 2023 North American Meat Institute Protein PACT consumer report, cited by National Hog Farmer, 51 percent of Gen Z respondents reported eating more chicken in the past year, which was higher than the average of 41 percent.
High-protein diets are a growing preference in the U.S. and were the most followed diet in the country in 2024, according to data from Statista.
Given Gen Z's concern for the environment and animal welfare, most people in America who identify as vegetarians fall within that age range, the data said. It suggests that Gen Z generally tends to opt for environmentally friendly meat sources, such as poultry, or refrain from eating meat altogether.
McCluskey said that she expected the demand for chicken "to continue to expand, capitalizing on the perception that it is healthier and better for the environment."