corporate responsibility

doing what's right

Corporate responsibility is part of McDonald’s heritage, and an integral part of our business strategy. For us, responsibility means striving to do what is right in the community, and integrating social and environmental priorities into our restaurants and relationships.

take a closer look

People sometimes have questions about the quality of our food and the way we do things.

And that’s fair enough.  We’re happy for anyone to take a closer look at our business and our food.

We’ve identified some of the most common questions below, and you might also like to visit our Frequently Asked Questions

is our beef really beef?

100% New Zealand beef
We’re committed to using only the best quality beef so we can serve you the tastiest burgers in our restaurants everyday. We use premium beef from prime beef cattle, such as Herefords and Friesian, purchased only from quality farms on the free market.

All our beef patties are made from 100% New Zealand beef, with no additives or preservatives, just a little salt and pepper before serving. Our beef comes from a number of farms throughout New Zealand, great beef locations such as Taranaki, Marlborough, Waikato and Manawatu. Occasionally we can’t source enough beef for our needs, so we have to get some from our Australian neighbours when our stocks run low.

Abattoirs and transport
All of our abattoirs are export accredited which means our beef meets the New Zealand Quarantine Inspection Service’s strict requirements for export beef.  Our beef is de-boned by hand and then transported to our patty production plants under controlled temperatures.

Making patties
Our patties are produced using specially designed equipment to ensure a perfect, consistent result for every burger patty. Our beef patties are prepared and packaged with thorough quality checks undertaken for every batch.

Delivery
Our patties are delivered to our restaurants by McKey Distribution Centre in vehicles with freezer compartments which ensures their premium quality.

Cooking
By the time our beef patties reach our restaurants, they have passed through 52 food safety and quality checks! Our beef patties are cooked to perfection in our restaurant kitchens for just the right amount of time - that's a minimum of 36 seconds for a regular patty and a minimum of 101 seconds for a Quarter Pounder patty! We use two-sided hotplates to cook the patties, so no extra fat is added during cooking.

Where does McDonald’s stand on animal welfare?

is it real fish?

Our fish are caught in some of the world's cleanest waters off the South Island by Talley’s Fisheries. The hoki fish fillets we use to prepare our super-delicious Filet-O-Fish burgers are renowned for their succulent moist texture, white flesh and great mild taste. That’s why we use them!

Preparation
We use only skilled professionals to fillet our fish before it’s formed into the crumbed, delicious portions we serve you on your favourite Filet-O-Fish burger.

Serving
Our fish is cooked in our kitchens and teamed with our famous McDonalds buns, cheese and special tartare sauce to give you the happy ending we know you love – the Filet-O-Fish!

is it really chicken?

We’re committed to using only the best quality chicken so we can serve you the tastiest burgers in all our restaurants everyday. Our chicken is 100% sourced from within New Zealand. We buy chicken from Ingham® and Tegel®, just like you would at home. Our premium chicken range - burgers and wraps - uses 100% chicken breast meat. The crispy range is coated in a lightly seasoned breading and deep fried, and the seared range is marinated and then seared on a hotplate to lock in the flavour. McDonald's McChicken burger contains a blend of deboned white and dark chicken meat , which is formed and coated with a tasty batter to ensure juicy, tasty chicken. Our McNuggets are made from tender chicken breast meat cut and seasoned in a delicious tempura coating.

do we care about Kiwi kids?

Some people might not know that there’s a lot of choice when it comes to your children at McDonald’s.  Here are a few important facts:

  • With Happy Meal Choices, kids can now choose to have a seared Chicken Snack Wrap, Pump® mini water, Keri® apple and blackcurrant fruit drink, chocolate flavoured milk or even a bag of New Zealand apple slices.
  • In March 2004 fruit bags were introduced as additional Happy Meal option, with the choice to swap fries with a fruit bag, or enjoy the fruit bag as a separate snack item.
  • All the apples in our fruit bags are New Zealand grown, including Granny Smith and Royal Gala varieties.  They’re a great alternative to fries, and make up one of the five recommended daily portions of fruit and vegetables.
  • As one of the largest sponsors of junior soccer and junior touch rugby in the country, McDonald’s assists in a number of ways, including providing equipment and awards for teams and assisting with resources such as coaching manuals, progress charts and skills certificates.
  • Our franchisees also support their local communities, including hosting local playgroups in their restaurants and supporting local sporting events.
  • We’re proud to support junior sports in our country and enjoy encouraging young New Zealanders to get out and be active.

Find out more about McDonald’s community involvement

where your money really goes

Nearly 80% of our restaurants in New Zealand are franchised by local business men and women.  Of every dollar spent at a McDonald’s restaurant in New Zealand, 95 cents stays right here in NZ.

Across the country, we employ more than 10,000 staff.

McDonald’s proudly supports Kiwi farmers, bakers, growers, fisheries and food suppliers.  In 2011 we spent more than $147 million with New Zealand suppliers.

Here’s a look at our shopping list.

In 2011 McDonald’s sourced the following from New Zealand suppliers:

  • 4.8 million kg of beef
  • 2.4 million kg of chicken
  • 1.45 million kg of lettuce for processing
  • 236,700 kg of tomatoes
  • 84 million buns, rolls, bagels and muffins
  • 5.3 million litres of milk
  • 18.8 million kg of potatoes for processing
  • 1.3 million kg of cheese
  • 12.8 million eggs
  • 328,000kg of Hoki

McDonald’s unique purchasing system, the relationships we share with our suppliers and consistency of product quality are among our top priorities.

Additionally, New Zealand producers exported more than $306 million worth of food to McDonald’s restaurants around the world in 2011, including the following:

  • 7.6 million kg of cheese to 25 other McDonald’s markets (Australia, Asia, South Africa, Middle East and South America)
  • 564 thousand litres of milk or milk products
  • 20 million kg of French fries to Pacific Islands, Middle East South East Asia and Australia
  • 21 million kg of New Zealand beef (mostly to North America)

 

where does McDonald’s stand on animal welfare?

McDonald’s has some of the highest animal welfare standards in the world, and we are proud of the work we have undertaken with our suppliers to ensure animals are farmed humanely and treated with respect.  In New Zealand, all McDonald’s suppliers also comply with or exceed New Zealand animal welfare legislation.

One of the initiatives implemented globally by McDonald’s is our work with industry recognised animal welfare experts, including Dr Temple Grandin www.grandin.com.  Dr Grandin is highly regarded for her work in setting and continually improving global animal welfare standards, and has visited New Zealand a number of times.

marketing: our approach

McDonald’s takes a responsible approach to marketing and advertising.  We comply with all New Zealand legislation, including the Advertising Codes of Practice.
Additionally, we are aligned with McDonald's Children's Marketing Global Guidelines
All McDonald’s advertising goes through a robust sign off process.

Children's Food (CF) Classification System

The Children's Food (CF) Classification System was developed in July 2008 by the New Zealand Television Broadcasters' Council (NZTBC), representing Television New Zealand, TV Works and Maori Television.  It applies to children's programming hours, which are defined by each television network, and aims to support the government’s Healthy Eating Healthy Action (HEHA) programme.  All advertising screening in children’s time must go through a stringent process to ensure it meets the CF Classification. 
McDonald's advertising during children’s programming times meets CF guidelines, meaning that any food advertised during these times fit within the food and beverage guidelines for 'everyday' foods.
Click here to download a copy of the Television Broadcasters’ Council brochure ‘Getting It Right For Children’