By George Anderson
From now on, when someone asks, "Do you know how many calories, fat, etc. are in that?," you will have an answer. At least if you're at McDonald's, that is.
The fast food restaurant chain announced it will include nutrition information on its product packaging in the first half of 2006. The packaging will be available in restaurants in North, Central and South America, Europe and Asia.
In a press release, Jim Skinner, chief executive officer of McDonald's, said, "Customers are coming to McDonald's in record numbers, and we take their trust in our Brand very seriously. That's why we want them to have easy-to-understand nutrition information about our great-tasting food and wide range of menu options. We are putting the information customers need literally into their hands. This initiative makes it easier than ever to understand the quality that goes into our food. We're very confident that the more information people have, the more they will like what they see at McDonald's."
Mike Roberts, president and chief operating officer, added, "There is nothing more important to McDonald's than building customer trust and loyalty around the world. We listen closely to our customers so we know how important transparency is, which is what this initiative is all about. Adding nutrition information to our packaging will help our customers meet their individual taste preferences and nutrition requirements, as well as choose from our menu of quality food and portion sizes."
Nutritional information will be conveyed with comparisons to daily requirements. Packages will include calories, protein, fat, carbohydrates and sodium data.
McDonald's said it will support its nutritional information initiative with additional educational materials to be distributed in stores and on the company's web site.
Moderator's Comment: What impact will adding nutritional information to its packaging have on McDonald's? Will it, for example, have any impact on future new menu additions? - George Anderson - Moderator