Comments on: I’m Hatin’ It: McDonald’s Market Research

By: Judy Lee

Judy Lee — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 15:44:12 +0000

thanks for sharing your insight and experience, scott! good to hear that conditions are improving from your perspective…being front and centre of the matter.

By: Scott Andrews

Scott Andrews — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 21:54:34 +0000

It was definitely a shock to the system after four months of local grub and no Western style grease. The McDonalds itself was quite the spectacle… however McDonalds and their suppliers are part of a scary trend of industrial food processing. This is concerning for a very crowded part of the world.

Now I don’t pretend to be an expert on Indian Agriculture practices, but farmer suicides, infant malnutrition and water borne fatalities are either on the rise or at unacceptable levels. I spent time with an Oxfam partner in the Gujarat province and witnessed the devastating impact of displacing (traditional) farmers. Food supply chains can have devastating human costs and Multinational Corporations have to consider these even though there are incredible profits to be had.

That said, change is happening and it’s a matter of taking some important humanitarian precautions when transforming livelihoods. India is a gongshow when it comes to Corporate Social Responsibility, but after spending some time there I am definitely concerned about the impact of their enormous economic transformation. Vandana Shiva @ http://www.navdanya.org/ is a wealth of knowledge and activism as to how preserve sustainability and human rights in an area undergoing such rapid changes.

lol! sorry for the over the top tangent/rant

By: Judy Lee

Judy Lee — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:45:27 +0000

How did the McChappati taste? McD’s supply chain is extremely efficient. I just read about their operation in India. They do source within India, but sourcing within 100 KMs…that is unlikely and unrealistic. Dreams, for sure!

Interesting read re: McD’s in India: http://www.articlesbase.com/marketing-articles/mcdonalds-india-supply-chain-729402.html

By: Scott Andrews

Scott Andrews — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:25:01 +0000

I visited McDonald’s in New Delhi and at the vegetarian McChappati with a Sprite and Fries. The location in Connaught place just outside of downtown Delhi was packed! There was no beef or pork as those are ingredients for civil war in those parts.

I will say that McDonald’s turns my stomach with the amount of packaging and disgustingly processed meat they use. Interesting piece though; I would love to see a McDonalds market a 100 kilometer diet campaign. I can dream right?

By: liv

liv — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 22:48:43 +0000

that mcrib looks nastay!!

By: Judy Lee

Judy Lee — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 17:27:57 +0000

They look pretty different (good run down here, http://plonk.in/915d), but they taste the same? Likely because they are all Quarter Pounder spin-offs, but with different fillings. Not a bad move to expand on a product that is really popular. McMarketing for sure, Ambrose.

Check out the ‘Big America’ campaign for these burgers, http://plonk.in/03ff

The Texas burger looks promising with fried onions! Wish I were in Japan to try them out.

By: Ambrose Lau

Ambrose Lau — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 09:40:54 +0000

They have this American themed menu here now: Texas, California, New York, and Hawaii burgers. Surprisingly they all taste quite similar…McMarketing.

By: Michael Tao

Michael Tao — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 20:13:01 +0000

The McRibs looks like cherries inside.

By: Judy Lee

Judy Lee — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 17:48:56 +0000

I agree, Erin! The McRib’s burger looks shiny and chunky (it’s a boneless pork patty, but they made it look like ribs) in that pic…

They do a better job of food styling their Big Macs and nuggets for pictures!

By: Erin Gee

Erin Gee — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 17:18:18 +0000

I will say that the McRib looks gross in the pic