Say it ain’t so, Joe! Or Dan, actually. (As in Dan Cathy, CEO of Chick-fil-A.) The company is reportedly in the midst of developing more vegan options on their menu. But they’re not just talking about salads and side dishes here. Some thought is being given to offering “meatless chicken.” Which, last time I checked, means it’s not actually chicken. (NY Post)

Chick-fil-A may eventually have to expand their slogan to “eat mor chikin or plant-based chikin alternatives.”

The fast-food chain is reportedly looking into the possibility of adding more vegan options and possible meat substitutes to their menu. While their menu currently has a few items that are meat free, these mostly consist of salads and side dishes.

Amanda Norris, the executive director of Chik-fil-A’s menu, told Business Insider that “a vegetarian option or a vegan option is something we’re looking at, we’re thinking about and have some research and development.”

It turns out that Chick-fil-A has a long, five-stage process for adding new items to the menu. These are called “understand, imagine, prototype, validate and launch.” They’re still in the early stages, but the research is said to be looking at something similar to Burger King’s Impossible Whopper that we discussed here previously. They’re using “meat” that’s cultured in a lab and constructed from plant products. (Sounds yummy, right? I know!)

Can they do the same thing with chicken? Or more to the point, should they do the same thing with chicken? I’m not familiar with all the science behind this, but I find it hard to believe that Chick-fil-A could ever take something cooked up out of plant root enzymes and make it taste the same as the delicious sandwiches they make today. And if they tell us in advance about what they did, I probably won’t be able to get that out of my mind when opening the package.

Of course, given some of the other options on the table, plant-based chicken might start sounding pretty good later this year. Other outfits are looking at making burgers and other food items out of… wait for it… “cricket powder.” And yes, cricket powder is exactly what it sounds like. Dried, ground up crickets. Thank the Lord I’m getting old and probably won’t live to see all of this.