An American fast food chain is taking advantage of the growing Muslim population in France by replacing all pork and bacon products from its menu with halal-certified beef and chicken.
Burger King is going after the 5-million strong Muslim consumers in France, the country with the biggest Muslim population in Europe, WND reported.
This came about after Burger King took over hamburger chain Quick's 405 outlets in France, according to The Local and Le Parisien.
With its expansion, Burger King will directly compete with McDonald's, which has 1,300 fast food outlets in France. The acquisition of Quick will make Burger King, which currently has 30 stores in France, the second largest fast food chain in the country.
Quick registered a turnover of $1.12 billion last year and employs 19,000 people.
Quick has about 20 halal restaurants in France, which source meat from animals slaughtered in compliance with Islamic law.
Le Parisien reported that the halal food market in France is worth about 5.5 billion euros. Groupe Bertrand, the major shareholder of Burger King France, is set to finalise the takeover of Quick this month.
The halal burger outlet is a growing market in France. An experiment was conducted for six months in 2009 to test the consumers' preference for halal food.
Some politicians opposed the lack of pork in some fast food restaurants, saying it's a form of "communitarianism."
Burger King France has about 5 million euro in annual sales and expects to have 50 restaurants by end of the year.
The takeover will make France one of the largest markets for Burger King worldwide. Burger King France was established in 2013.
Quick has about 509 restaurants in France, Belgium, Luxemburg and outside of Europe and the takeover in France will boost Burger King's position in the fast food market.
