Japanese Diners Shocked to Find Plastic in Their McNuggets
The motto for McDonald’s wildly flailing transparency campaign is “Our Food. Your Questions.” Well, Ronald, since you have so graciously opened up the floor for discussion, we have only one question: How did shards of plastic find their way into your McNuggets?
Earlier this week, two diners in separate Japanese locations found a crunchy surprise in their otherwise spongy nuggets, prompting McDonald’s to recall almost 1 million mechanically separated squares of fried chicken bits.
Though the tainted nuggets came from the same Cargill factory in Thailand, the two plastic shards were different colors. One was blue, which is the color of plastic crates that Cargill uses to transport the nuggets, but the other was a color that McDonald’s claims doesn't exist in any of its affiliated factories. We can add that to the list of “our questions” for “your food,” McD’s. Specifically, "Where did that plastic come from?"
This continues a string of fiscal disasters for the fast-food giant, who in 2014 experienced their first annual profit loss in 11 years. It has endured a potato shortage, a large batch of tainted beef, and even an incident involving human teeth found in an order of french fries—but the plastic McNugget debacle could be the straw that breaks consumers’ backs.
Though McDonald’s spokesperson Takashi Hasegasa doesn’t have any answers, he does have a message to would-be McDiners: “We deeply apologize for the trouble we have caused our customers and we are taking quick measures to analyze the cause of the contamination,” the spokesperson told The Associated Press.
The higher-ups at McDonald’s Japan remain unpanicked and wholly confident in their company’s ability to produce high-quality chicken products. Senior executive Takehiko Aoki was outspoken in his support: "I will eat McNuggets. I will feed McNuggets to my children. I have no doubts.”
Let’s hope Aoki’s 10-pack of McNuggets comes sans plastic.
Related stories on TakePart:
• With a Steep Decline in Sales, McDonald's Didn't Have Much to Be Thankful for in November
• 'Til McNuggets Do You Part: McDonald's Gives Couples an 'Extraordinary' Wedding Experience
• 9-Year-Old Tells McDonald’s CEO That She’s Fed Up With His Tricks
• At McDonald's, Wage Theft Is Just Another Managerial Task
Original article from TakePart
