Company expands commitment with Alliance for a Healthier Generation
by setting bold goals in 120 markets around the world to evolve the
Happy Meal menu
OAK BROOK, Ill., Feb. 15, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --
Today, McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) announced an expanded
commitment to families, supporting the company's long-term global
growth plan by leveraging its reach to impact children's meals,
access to reading, and keeping families together through Ronald
McDonald House Charities. By 2022, McDonald's will make
improvements to the Happy Meal menu across 120 markets to offer
more balanced meals, simplify ingredients, continue to be
transparent with Happy Meal nutrition information, reinforce
responsible marketing to children, and leverage innovative
marketing to help impact the purchase of foods and beverages that
contain recommended food groups in Happy Meals.
"We recognise the opportunity that we have to
support families as one of the most visited restaurants in the
world, and remain committed to elevating our food, celebrating the
joy of reading, and helping those in need through Ronald McDonald
House Charities," said Steve Easterbrook, McDonald's President
and CEO. "Given our scale and reach, we hope these actions
will bring more choices to consumers and uniquely benefit millions
of families, which are important steps as we build a
better McDonald's."
In 2013, McDonald's began working with the
not-for-profit Alliance for Healthier Generation (Healthier
Generation) to develop a comprehensive plan for 20 major markets*
to increase customers' access to fruit, vegetables, low-fat dairy
and water; and many of those markets are ahead of schedule in their
progress on those prior commitments.
Today, the company is furthering its
efforts with Healthier Generation to set five new Global Happy Meal
Goals through 2022.
1. Offer Balanced
Meals
Using rigorous nutrition criteria grounded in
science and nutrition policy, by the end of 2022, at least 50
percent or more of the Happy Meals listed on menus (restaurant menu
boards, primary ordering screen of kiosks and owned mobile ordering
applications) in each market will meet McDonald's new Global Happy
Meal Nutrition Criteria of less than or equal to 600 calories; 10
percent of calories from saturated fat; 650mg sodium; and 10
percent of calories from added sugar.
Currently, 28 percent of Happy Meal combinations
offered on menu boards in 20 major markets meet these new nutrition
criteria. To reach the goal of 50 percent or more, markets will add
new menu offerings, reformulate or remove menu offerings from the
Happy Meal section of the menu board. For example, last month
McDonald's Italy introduced a new Happy Meal entrée called the
"Junior Chicken," a lean protein sandwich (grilled chicken).
McDonald's Australia is currently exploring new vegetable and lean
protein options and McDonald's France is looking at new vegetable
offerings.
2. Simplify
Ingredients
As consumers' tastes and preferences continue to
evolve, markets will prioritize Happy Meals and simplify
ingredients by removing artificial flavors, added colors from
artificial sources, and reducing artificial preservatives where
feasible. In 2016, McDonald's USA removed artificial
preservatives from Chicken McNuggets, which also have no artificial
flavors and colors, and the Chicken McNuggets from McDonald's
France and Canada have no artificial flavors, colors or
preservatives.
3. Be Transparent with Happy
Meal Nutrition Information
The company has made a continuous effort to meet
consumers' desire for easy access to nutrition information for menu
items it serves with a goal of ensuring that nutrition information
for Happy Meals is available and accessible through all McDonald's
owned websites and mobile apps used for ordering where they
exist.
4. Market
Responsibly
Under the new goals, all Happy Meal bundles
advertised to children will meet McDonald's new global nutrition
criteria, and will continue to meet any existing local/regional
advertising pledges with respect to marketing to
children.
5. Leverage innovative
marketing to help increase purchase of foods and beverages that
contain recommended food groups in Happy Meals
McDonald's recognizes the opportunity it has to
make a positive impact using its size and scale to leverage
innovative marketing, including packaging and promotions and use of
new technologies, such as kiosks and mobile apps, to help serve
more fruit, vegetables, low-fat dairy, whole grains, lean protein
and water in Happy Meals. This goal takes these actions one step
further to include a measurement component and externally sharing
best practices and results in a transparent manner.
McDonald's USA Happy Meal
Changes
Customers in the U.S. will see accelerated changes
to the Happy Meal menu this year. In June 2018, 100 percent
of the meal combinations offered on Happy Meal menu boards in the
U.S. will be 600 calories or fewer, and 100 percent of those meal
combinations will be compliant with the new nutrition criteria for
added sugar, saturated fat, and 78 percent compliant with the new
sodium criteria.
- Listing only the following entrée choices:
Hamburger, 4-piece and 6-piece Chicken McNuggets. The Cheeseburger
will only be available at a customer's request.
- Replacing the small French fries with kids-sized
fries in the 6-piece Chicken McNugget meal, which decreases the
calories and sodium in the fries serving by half.
- Reformulating chocolate milk to reduce the amount
of added sugar. During this period, chocolate milk will
no longer be listed on the Happy Meal menu, but will be available
at a customer's request.
- Later this year, bottled water will be added
as a featured beverage choice on Happy Meal menu
boards.
- In December 2017, McDonald's USA completed the
transition to Honest Kids Appley Ever After organic juice drink,
which has 45 less calories and half the total sugar than the prior
100 percent apple juice served in the U.S.
With these planned menu updates, there will be
average reductions of 20 percent in calories, 50 percent in added
sugars,13 percent in saturated fat and/or 17 percent in sodium,
depending on the customer's specific meal selection. These
reductions reflect the average nutrition data of U.S. Happy Meal
offerings on the menu last year compared to those planned for later
this year. Already, several of the Happy Meal combinations
available on U.S. menu boards today meet the new nutrition criteria
and will not be changing.
McDonald's USA last announced changes of this
magnitude in 2013 as part of its commitment with Healthier
Generation, when removing soda from the Happy Meal section of its
menu boards, which has resulted in a 14 percentage point
increase in the number of Happy Meals ordered that include water,
milk or juice as their beverage choice. In December 2013,
customers chose water, milk or juice as their beverage choice in 38
percent of Happy Meals and that number increased to 52 percent in
December 2017. During that same period, the number of Happy Meals
that included soda and other beverages decreased from 62 percent to
48 percent. For the first time, more than half of Happy Meals
ordered in the U.S. have included water, milk or juice as their
beverage of choice.
"From day one, Healthier Generation knew our work
with McDonald's could influence broad scale improvements to meal
options for kids everywhere," said Dr. Howell Wechsler, Chief
Executive Officer of Alliance for a Healthier Generation. "Today's
announcement represents meaningful progress to impact kids'
calories, saturated fat, sodium and added sugar in Happy Meal
bundles as offered on menu boards - and to promote more
water. This sets a high bar, and we hope other industry
leaders will follow suit."
"As a nutritionist and a mom, this is a
pivotal moment as we unveil new, ambitious goals in collaboration
with Healthier Generation that we hope will positively impact
families around the world," said Julia Braun, MPH, Registered
Dietitian and Head of Global Nutrition at McDonald's. "Our
efforts have led to big changes and real progress and as part of
our continued food journey, we're committed to making it easier for
families to choose balanced options that will make measurable
differences."
These commitments apply to all markets globally
with measurement and reporting of progress among 20 major markets,
representing nearly 85 percent of the company's global sales. The
company will work with Healthier Generation and an independent,
third-party to measure and publicly report progress every two
years.
"Happy Meal Readers" Book
Program
The company is also using its scale for good to
inspire a passion for reading and will continue to spread the
joy of reading to more families. Since 2001, the company and
its franchisees have distributed more than 370 million
books in Happy Meals. "Happy Meal Readers" continues to
expand, and by 2019 children in more than 100 markets will be
able to choose a book or toy year-round in their Happy
Meals.
Ronald McDonald House
Charities (RMHC)
When it comes to supporting families, the company
has played an important role for more than 40 years in keeping
families near the care they need when their children are sick.
McDonald's was a founding mission partner of the Charity
and remains committed to leveraging the size and scale of
McDonald's restaurants to promote and raise money to support the
growth of the Charity. RMHC keeps families together,
close to the care they need through more than 364 Ronald
McDonald Houses, 227 Ronald McDonald Family Rooms,
and 49 Ronald McDonald Care Mobiles in 64
countries and regions around the world. Last year
alone, RMHC provided care and resources to more than five and a
half million children and families. Last year, McDonald's
restaurants supported the work of RMHC by providing approximately
2.4 million overnight stays in neighborhoods and in communities
around the world.
About
McDonald's
McDonald's is the world's leading global
foodservice retailer with over 37,000 locations in over 100
countries. Approximately 90% of McDonald's restaurants worldwide
are owned and operated by independent local business men and
women.
About Healthier
Generation
The Alliance for a Healthier Generation empowers
kids to develop lifelong healthy habits by ensuring the
environments that surround them provide and promote good health.
More than 25 million children have been helped by Healthier
Generation's work with schools, communities and businesses across
the country. Make a difference
at HealthierGeneration.org and join us
on Facebook and Twitter.
*20 major
markets: U.S., Canada, Brazil, Argentina, U.K.,
France, Germany, Austria, Spain, Netherlands, Italy, Poland,
Sweden, Switzerland, Russia, Hong Kong, China, Japan, Taiwan and
Australia.
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MEDIA CONTACTS: |
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Becca Hary
McDonald's
becca.hary@us.mcd.com |
Kate Siskel
Alliance for a Healthier Generation
kate.siskel@healthiergeneration.org |