McDonald’s has announced a wide-ranging programme to remove and minimise plastic and improve recyclability in packaging across Europe.
The plan comprises of the removal of McFlurry lids across every European country in which McDonald’s operates, and the rollout of a new fibre-based lid across all cold drinks in France, as well as trials across markets for alternatives to the plastic McFlurry spoon, a redesigned paper straw, and toy take-back programmes.
Pieter Van Hooydonck
The packaging trials form part of McDonald’s global Better M platform, which aims to implement environmentally positive changes across McDonald’s sustainable packaging and recycling supply chain, as well as the customer experience.
McDonald’s will launch the trials through existing restaurants across Europe, using its scale to expand successful country trials across the continent.
Selected restaurants across Europe will serve as testing grounds, bringing innovative packaging concepts direct to consumers, and the feedback collected will inform which options are scaled up or adapted.
Currently, 78 per cent of packaging used by McDonald’s globally is made from fibre, and this figure increases for its European markets, where fibre comprises around 88 per cent of all packaging, and plastic only 12 per cent.
Keith Kenny, Vice President of Global Sustainability at McDonald’s, said: “We care about lessening our impact on the environment and know our customers do too.”
“That’s why we’re finding new and innovative ways to reduce our use of packaging, switch to more sustainable materials and help our customers to reuse and recycle too.”
“The trials we are conducting across Europe are vital in helping us get first-hand feedback from customers on solutions that help them to be conscious consumers, without compromising on quality and the McDonald’s experience they love.”
“Better M is a powerful platform to allow us to work with our customers and choose the right solutions to scale up across Europe.”