Mums, grandparents and teachers report back on the supply chain journey behind McDonald’s most iconic products
Quality Scouts blogs, video diaries and behind-the-scenes photos unveiled at whatmakesmcdonalds.co.uk.
Quality Scouts with Phil Vickery on McDonald’s Big Mac visit
McDonald’s UK today unveils a series of interactive reports revealing exactly how some of its most iconic products are made. The reports are told through the eyes of Quality Scouts, members of the public who this summer took part in unprecedented behind-the-scenes visits from farm to food production to restaurant counter.
McDonald’s invitation for members of the public to investigate its supply chain attracted a strong public response: more than 1,700 people applied to become a Quality Scout. Fifteen were selected to investigate and chronicle the journey of four world-famous products – the Big Mac, Happy Meal hamburger, Fries and the Sausage & Egg McMuffin. They included mums, dads, grandparents, teachers and agricultural experts from all corners of the UK.
The Quality Scouts were given unlimited access at every stage of the supply chain, from the farms where McDonald’s ingredients are produced, through to cooking their own product in a restaurant. Over a six-week period, they travelled thousands of miles visiting some of the 17,500 British and Irish farms that supply McDonald’s menu, as well as abattoirs, bakeries and beef patty suppliers. They met and interviewed farmers, food producers and McDonald’s employees, asking challenging questions about where ingredients come from and the people and processes involved.
Quality Scouts on McDonald’s Fries visit
Their reports are now available at whatmakesmcdonalds.co.uk. They include:
- Video diaries for each visit, including grandmother Christine from Lancashire trying her first ever Big Mac
- Blogs from each Quality Scout, including mum-of-one Karen detailing her impressions of every step of the Happy Meal hamburger’s supply chain journey
- Picture galleries for each visit, including Phil Vickery cooking his own McDonald’s burger
England rugby legend and 2011 Celebrity MasterChef winner, Phil Vickery, helped select the Quality Scouts and joined the Big Mac visit. Vickery will lead the reporting back process and McDonald’s will be hosting a live Q&A on its UK Facebook page with its food and supply chain experts at 12pm on Friday 25th October.
Phil Vickery said:
“As the son of a dairy farmer and someone who is passionate about good food, it was important to me that we selected people who were sceptical about how McDonald’s makes its food and how its ingredients are sourced. Each Quality Scout came armed with their own ideas and they interrogated farmers, suppliers and McDonald’s own people at every stage.
“Many of the Quality Scouts reconsidered their perceptions of McDonald’s as a result of the visits – Christine, a grandmother from Lancashire, ate her first ever Big Mac on one of our visits. I urge anyone who wants to find out exactly what’s in their McDonald’s meal to watch and read the Quality Scouts reports.”
Warren Anderson, Vice President, Supply Chain, commented:
“People have never been more interested in what goes into their food and where it comes from. We receive questions every day from people looking for more information about the products on our menu. We are extremely proud of our longstanding British and Irish supply chain and this is why we decided to go further than ever before, inviting people to see for themselves how some of our most iconic products are made.
“The response to our call for Quality Scouts was overwhelming, and we’ve worked hard with our suppliers to provide a series of transparent ‘access all areas’ visits. The testimonials and facts speak for themselves and we hope that through our Quality Scouts reports we will help answer some of the most commonly asked questions and misconceptions about our food.”
To find out more about Quality Scouts and their journey behind the scenes of McDonald’s supply chain, visit www.whatmakesmcdonalds.co.uk. An online live Q&A with McDonald’s supply chain experts will take place on Friday 25th October at 12pm on McDonald’s UK Facebook page.
Watch the video of the Quality Scouts’ ‘behind the scenes’ visit: http://youtu.be/v3O0BMkOTYM
