Tainted chicken supply to Japanese McDonald's restaurants led the worldwide franchise to develop a new type of chicken nugget. Tofu Shinjo Nuggets will debut in fast food stores in Japan Wednesday.

With recent halting of all chicken product sales due to a China chicken-nugget supplier Shanghai Husi Food Co., the company rolled out the new nuggets, which are made of "onions, carrots, soybeans and minced fish." Shinjo is a Japanese food type made of fish paste, starch and other varied ingredients. A McDonald's Japan spokeswoman said the Tofu Shinjo Nuggets will not include any chicken and will be manufactured in domestic factories.

The nuggets will be available Wednesday for about $2.44 for four pieces, and are served with a ginger-flavored sauce. McDonald's plans to keep the Tofu Shinjo Nuggets on the menu until late September.

McDonald's is the largest restaurant chain by revenue in Japan. This is the first type of nugget to include tofu, according to the spokeswoman.

"Because it isn't meat, it tastes a bit different. It's a bit softer," the spokeswoman said. "Calorie-wise, it is a bit lower than chicken as well."

The spokeswoman also said that McDonald's planned to release the product before the scandal with China's chicken.

Earlier in July, Shanghai Husi Food Co. was accused of using expired meat in its products. Shanghai Husi Food also supplies product to Starbucks and Burger King in Asia. McDonalds Japan immediately dropped them as a supplier.

"I would like to extend my sincere apology to our valued customers," Sarah Casanova, chief executive of McDonald's Japan, said at a news conference Tuesday.

Recent food safety issues have continued to surface in China. In 2008, a dairy product contamination of the industrial chemical melamine made thousands of people sick and caused six infants' deaths. Chinese consumers are now often looking to foreign brands for better safety standards with their food.