Fans of Mcdonald's french fries in the Philippines need not worry about the fast food classic disappearing from stores or being offered in smaller quantities as its local franchise holder said Tuesday that local supplies were enough.
Since late 2021, McDonald's around the world has been suffering from shipment delays from potatoes used to make its famous French fries, prompting them to limit servings to small and medium sizes.
Dubbed a "sacri-fries" by Malaysia in their pun-laden announcement, an attempt to help customers weather the news, the shortage was first felt in Japan and has since spread this year to other Asian countries, like Taiwan and most recently, Indonesia.
This begs the question: is the Philippines next?
"All McDonald's stores in the Philippines continue to serve fries," Adi Timbol-Hernandez, McDonald's Philippines Corporate Relations Director, told reportr.
"While we feel the pressure from the on-going global potato supply chain constraints, we are currently able to manage our inventory, allowing our customers to keep enjoying our World Famous Fries," she added.
It's not only McDonald's that is facing this pressure. Even KFC has been scrimping on their fries and other potato-based products in some parts of the world.
McDonald's and KFC both cited supply issues caused by floods in Canada, a major transit point for shipments, compounding the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global supply chain that has been felt since last year and could last for another two years.
In the case of McDonald's, their signature french fries, as stated on their website, has always been "produced from only the best, high-quality potatoes of the Russet Burbank, Russet Rangers and Shepody variety", and are therefore being shipped from parts of the world where they are best grown for quality assurance purposes.
Quoted in a Vice Media story, author Dan Nosowitz pointed to the french fry crisis as a “lack of versatility” in the global agricultural trade as the root of current problems, instead of a shortage of potatoes themselves, addressing concerns on why McDonald’s couldn't just rely on local produce of farmers in countries where it is happening.
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