McDonald’s Ketchup Change, Restaurant To Stop Serving Heinz

McDonald’s have decided to make a meteoric change to their condiments, with the restaurant chain announcing that they will stop serving Heinz ketchup after 40 years of service.

The dispute began after Heinz decided to appoint Bernardo Hees, who was the former head of McDonald’s rival, Burger King. This clearly caused a bone of contention within the McDonald’s hierarchy and lead them to make the monumental change.

McDonald’s made the announcement via a statement, which read, “We have decided to transition our business to other suppliers over time.”

The restaurant are hoping that there will be a smooth transition across the 34,000 establishments that are located around the world, with McDonald’s announcing that they will work closely in conjunction with Heinz “to ensure a smooth and orderly transition of the McDonald’s restaurant business.”

Meanwhile, Heinz made their own statement regarding the change, however they remained incredibly coy and didn’t divulge any further details on the matter. Heinz stated, “As a matter of policy, Heinz does not comment on relationships with customers.”

Hees was recently appointed at Heinz after it was bought by Berkshire Hathaway, which is owned by Warren Buffett, and 3G Capital, a Brazilian investment conglomerate, for $28 billion. Burger King is also partly owned by 3G Capital too.

Only Pittsburgh and Minneapolis use Heinz ketchup inside the United States, however it is used in almost every other store around the world.

Becca Hary, McDonald’s director of Global Media Relations, confirmed the news, stating, “We only used Heinz in the Minneapolis and Pittsburgh markets in the U.S. Globally, Heinz represents a small percentage of McDonald’s condiment and sauce business.”

McDonalds stores in the United States are filled with ketchup dispensers that aren’t branded, while their ketchup packets are actually labeled “fancy ketchup.” In comparison, Burger King uses Heinz ketchup in approximately 80% of its markets, according to a spokesman for the restaurant.

Last week, McDonald’s announced that they are changing its Dollar Menu in order to try and stop a slump in its sales. It is now named Dollar Menu & More, and some items will still cost around a dollar, while others will cost more.

McDonald’s announced the decision via its official Twitter account last Wednesday, stating, “Dollar Menu fans, don’t worry… our new Dollar Menu & More will offer many options that are still $1 and some new choice too!” This new menu will begin on November 4, while the new items are still yet to be identified.

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[Image via Bocman1973/Shutterstock]