McDonalds to Raise Prices Paid to Producers

As of today (15 October) the burger chain will pay 5% more for the beef and pork it buys from its suppliers. This money will be passed directly back to the 6,300 British farmers that supply meat to McDonald's.

The company say that the move will result in an injection of more that £445,000 into British agriculture by the end of the year and is a response to the difficulties faced beef and pork producers following a summer of FMD and blue tongue outbreaks.

In addition to the higher prices, McDonald's will also increase the amount of British beef it purchases by 30%- around 100 tonnes extra a week- and increase the number of permitted animal movements from three to four to include beef that would usually have been exported.

Senior vice president of McDonald's, Matthew Howe, said: "Our business is built on the highest quality British farming and we have a responsibility to act on our loyalty and commitment to the industry.

"British farming currently faces arguably its most challenging period for many years and there is little doubt that, at current prices, beef and pig farmers cannot make a return on their animals. "We hope this combination of measures will help relieve some immediate pressures and provide stability going forward."

The company has said that the price increase will not lead to an increase in prices at retail level.

All McDonald's beef comes from the UK and Ireland and all its pork is British. The restaurant's beef patties use 100% beef and in 2006 McDonald's boneless bacon was sourced from 1.2m pigs, all from British farms.

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