McDonald's to Start Serving Kale

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Just a few short months after mocking the leafy stuff (and the foodies who partake) in a Big Mac commercial that features the voiceover proclaiming their lettuce "will never be kale," McDonald's announced that they will roll out a new breakfast bowl that blends kale and spinach with turkey sausage and egg whites.

The announcement comes on the heels of other health-conscious changes made at the fast food chain, like sourcing chickens raised without antibiotics and adding clementines to Kids Meals while in season. The sudden concern for things like nutrients follows disappointing sales numbers in 2014, which may have encouraged the company to announce their plans to become a more "modern, progressive burger company." But will that work?

"They've got to recognize there are a lot of people who really don't see themselves as the mainline McDonald's customer at this point, and don't want that style of food," David Just, a professor of behavioral economics at Cornell University, told NPR's The Salt.

But there's hope the incongruous pairing will introduce kale to a new audience. "At the end of the day, if kale is at McDonald's, more people are going to be exposed to it and more people are going to try it," says Columbia University's Drew Ramsey, a psychiatrist who launched National Kale Day several years back. "And that's a good thing for health."

If you're interested in checking out the $4 McDonald's kale bowls, they'll be available at nine locations in southern California.