NEW YORK — McDonald’s once poured big marketing dollars into its salads. But since 2020, greens have been off the menu. That’s because the chain has concluded that when people go to McDonald’s, they mostly want a burger and fries.
“If people really want salads from McDonald’s we will gladly relaunch salads,” said Joe Erlinger, the president of McDonald’s USA, . “But what our experience has proven is that’s not what the consumer’s looking for from McDonald’s,” he added. “They’re looking for great french fries, they’re looking for a , they’re looking for a hot fresh sandwich.
And so, that’s what we’re going to continue to provide them.” Serving a healthy meal — or one fit for vegetarians, vegans or children — can help fast food chains avoid a so-called “veto vote,” which involves a group or family skipping a restaurant that doesn’t have options for picky eaters or ones with dietary restrictions. For McDonald’s, putting salads on the menu was likely a way to avoid the veto vote and .
McDonald’s had been serving salads for decades prior to the pandemic. Salads made it possible for some to eat at the chain while (as one diet blogger , “the salads were the only half-healthy item I could eat at McDonald’s.”) For others, it may have been more of a , even if they weren’t.
McDonald’s removed salads from national menus in 2020. But in 2018, salads became more of a liability than a draw. That year, caused by consuming contam.
