Getting Into Harvard Easier Than McDonald's University in China

Zhou Xiaobu runs from one end of a table to another, grasping a piece of a puzzle she and her team are assembling as part of a leadership training exercise for McDonald’s Corp. managers.

“Go, go, go,” yells their Taiwanese teacher, exhorting them to work for the prize, a box of Danish butter cookies, for being the first to build the company’s trademark Golden Arches. Above their heads is a sign that reads: “Learning today, leading tomorrow.” The thick green binders stuffed with paperwork on each of the 31 students’ desks indicate the next activity may not be as rousing.

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McDonald's Japan sales in 2010 hit record high for 5th year

Image via Wikipedia

TOKYO — Sales at McDonald’s Holdings Co (Japan) Ltd’s own and franchise stores climbed to an all-time high in 2010 for the fifth consecutive year, rising 2% from a year earlier to 542.7 billion yen, according to a preliminary report released by the company Wednesday. Business was strong partly because of brisk sales of the Big America brand of hamburgers introduced in January, McDonald’s said.

But the company’s President Eiko Harada warned that the restaurant industry is facing hard times ahead, the severity of which is ‘‘unforeseeable,’’ when discussing the business outlook for this year at a press conference.

In December, sales on a same-store basis jumped 11.6% from a year earlier and the number of customers leapt 8.9% while spending per customer grew 2.5%.

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Dunkin Donuts comes out with new Ad Campaign

The new campaign, which includes print, TV, and digital ads, is the chain’s latest effort to one-up its biggest rivals, Starbucks and McDonald’s, in the java wars. The ads mostly feature everyday people who were picked as part of a nationwide casting call in November, which drew 1,000 people.

Among the ads’ pitchmen are two firefighters from Georgia who, when asked, “What are you drinkin’?’’ respond: “I’m drinkin’ Dunkin’.’’

Dan Saia, vice president of consumer engagement at Dunkin’ Donuts, a unit of privately owned Dunkin’ Brands Inc. in Canton, said the campaign is designed to let real customers tell the Dunkin’ Donuts story.

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Fast-food restaurants plan a heaping helping of excess

Who's ready for a steaming-hot bowl of meat, eggs and cheese from Burger King for breakfast? Or a pizza with not just bacon but "double bacon" and six types of cheese?

Rolling into 2011, fast-food joints across the country are set to deploy a potent new arsenal of greasy goodness for Americans who have grown numb to mere burgers. Think spicier, cheesier, gooier. The new items flout principles of healthful eating and instead celebrate a spirit of wanton gluttony.

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On McDonald's Menu: Variety, Caution .

AUGUSTA, Ga.—More than 100 items crowd the menus at Dee and Christine Crawford's five McDonald's restaurants, ranging from familiar Egg McMuffins to newfangled fruit smoothies. The family franchisees recently added oatmeal and caramel-mocha beverages. Next up for consideration: frozen strawberry lemonade.

In certain restaurants around the country, McDonald's Corp. is testing flatbread sandwiches and "garden" snack wraps—chicken and vegetables wrapped in a tortilla.

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McDonald's challenges KFC Christmas tradition in Japan

Thanks to a hugely successful advertising campaign in the 1970s that proclaimed "Kentucky for Christmas!" millions of Japanese have made KFC their traditional Christmas Day meal. This year, McDonald's is looking to get a slice of that business.

courtesy of McDonald's Japan

The burger giant has launched its Christmas Waku Waku Chicken Variety campaign. McDonald's started taking advance orders for the set meal on November 4 and selling over the counter at its more than 3,700 domestic outlets in early December.

The set includes two grilled chicken breasts, two five-piece boxes of Chicken McNuggets, two "shaka shaka" chicken pieces, which come with three flavours - cheese, black pepper and pizza - that must be added to the chicken, plus a mega-portion of fried potatoes.

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McDonalds makes it into Wikileaks

Summary: In an unexpected twist in McDonald's ten-year legal battle with former franchisee Servipronto, the Second Court of Appeals ruled on December 7, 2005, that the U.S. fast-food giant had illegally terminated its franchising agreement with Servipronto on July 1, 1996, and therefore owed the local firm $24 million in damages for unrealized earnings during what would have been a 20-year extension, to June 30, 2016. One other case involving McDonald's and Servipronto has been resolved in favor of McDonald's, while two others are unresolved. The Salvadoran Courts are inefficient, politicized, and occasionally corrupt. Their inability to effectively enforce commercial law detracts from the country's ability to attract investment. Post will continue to encourage the Government of El Salvador to press for meaningful judicial reform. End summary.

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McDonald's sued for tempting Californian mum's daughter with Happy Meals toys

Maya Parham loves McDonald's. But not because of the food. According to a lawsuit filed in California last week the fast food giant is using Barbie, Shrek, Strawberry Shortcake and a galaxy of other toy and cartoon characters to lure in the six-year-old. Now Maya's mother, Monet, wants it to stop.

"I object to the fact that McDonald's is getting into my kids' heads without my permission and actually changing what my kids want to eat," she said.

Her suit is backed by the Centre for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and comes as McDonald's and its rivals face pressure over their use of toys to sell kids' meals. In California, two counties have imposed nutritional limits on the meals McDonald's can sell with toys attached. In Wisconsin, the fast food firm recently fought off another lawsuit. These toy wars are being fought against an increasingly heated debate over what to do about the US's obesity rate.

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McDonald’s chief attacks children’s meal ‘food police’

The chief executive of McDonald’s has described critics of the company who have tried to curtail the sale of Happy Meals aimed at children as “food police” and accused them of undermining parents in making decisions for their families.
In an interview with the Financial Times, Jim Skinner responded to last month’s vote by the San Francisco board of supervisors to forbid restaurants from offering toys with meals unless the food complied with limits on calories, sodium, sugar and fat.

“We’ll continue to sell Happy Meals,” said Mr Skinner, in the face of a ban that does not become effective until December 2011. The new rule “really takes personal choice away from families who are more than capable of making their own decisions”.

 

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Hackers Steal McDonald's Customer Data

McDonald's is working with law enforcement authorities after malicious hackers broke into another company's databases and stole information about an undetermined number of the fast food chain's customers.

McDonald's has also alerted potentially affected customers via e-mail and through a message on its website.
"We have been informed by one of our long-time business partners, Arc Worldwide, that limited customer information collected in connection with certain McDonald's websites and promotions was obtained by an unauthorized third party," a McDonald's spokeswoman said via e-mail on Saturday.

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McDonald's Sales Rise Less Than Expected in November

McDonald's Corp.'s same-store sales rose 4.8% in November from a year earlier, driven by its McRib sandwich in the U.S. and continued strong demand for McCafe beverages.

Shares were down 1.6% at $79.05 in premarket trading as the latest numbers missed analysts' estimates for growth of 5.6% globally, including a 5.1% rise in the U.S. The stock was up 29% this year through Tuesday's close.
McDonald's also said currency fluctuations are expected to hurt fourth-quarter earnings by one to two cents a share.

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Senate Widens Its Probe Of Bare-Bones Health Plans .

WASHINGTON—A congressional committee is widening its investigation of bare-bones health-insurance policies to encompass potentially hundreds of plans offered by low-wage employers.
What started as a probe into McDonald's Corp.'s insurance plan for store workers is expanding into broad scrutiny of "mini-med" policies that could ensnare large mini-med carriers including Aetna Inc. and Cigna Corp.

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McDonald's to launch its own accredited degree

McDonald's is going to introduce its own degree course for its restaurant managers in the UK.

The foundation degree, which will be accredited by Manchester Metropolitan University, marks the fast-food company's latest move into education.
McDonald's will also announce that its apprenticeship scheme has been approved by Ofsted inspectors.

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McDonald’s raising prices in China

McDonald’s Corp, the world’s largest restaurant chain, increased prices for its burgers, drinks and snacks in China yesterday to offset costs after the country’s inflation surged to a two-year high.
Product prices were raised between 0.5 yuan and 1 yuan (US$0.08 and US$0.15) because of higher raw material costs, Sophia Luan (欒江紅), China spokeswoman for the Oak Brook, Illinois-based company, said in a telephone interview. She declined to provide an average percentage increase.

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McDonald's and PepsiCo to help write UK health policy

 Photograph: Murdo Macleod
for the Guardian

The Department of Health is putting the fast food companies McDonald's and KFC and processed food and drink manufacturers such as PepsiCo, Kellogg's, Unilever, Mars and Diageo at the heart of writing government policy on obesity, alcohol and diet-related disease, the Guardian has learned.

In an overhaul of public health, said by campaign groups to be the equivalent of handing smoking policy over to the tobacco industry, health secretary Andrew Lansley has set up five "responsibility deal" networks with business, co-chaired by ministers, to come up with policies. Some of these are expected to be used in the public health white paper due in the next month.

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San Francisco mayor vetoes 'Happy Meal' ban

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov 13, 2010 (AFP) - San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom has vetoed a ban on sales of McDonald’s Happy Meals with children’s toys as too intrusive.
"Parents, not politicians, should decide what their children eat, especially when it comes to spending their own money," Newsom said Friday in announcing the veto.
The city’s board of supervisors passed the legislation forbidding giveaways of toys with kids meals unless they met strict dietary criteria. McDonald’s Happy Meals, seen as the target of the ban, do not meet the board’s criteria.

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McDonald's October Sales Climb

McDonald's Corp. (MCD - Analyst Report) posted global comparable sales growth of 6.5% in October, on the heels of strong sales of beverage as well as core menu products. Comparable sales growth stepped up from 3.3% recorded in October 2009.  
Barring Europe, the fast-food restaurant operator witnessed an uptrend across its domestic and international markets on a year-over-year basis. Geographically, however, Europe was the major contributor to the month’s growth followed by United States and the Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa (APMEA) region.

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Accor Replaces CEO Pelisson With McDonald's Hennequin

Accor SA, Europe’s largest hotel owner, said Chief Executive Officer Gilles Pelisson will be replaced by Denis Hennequin owing to differences with the board.

Pelisson, 53, will step down as CEO on Dec. 1 after the two sides “recognized the strategic divergences between them” at a meeting yesterday, the Evry, France-based company said today.

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5 worst fast-food meals marketed to kids

The most recent issue of Good Medicine lists what it considers the five worst fast-food meals marketed to children. The list was compiled by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine:
McDonald's Mighty Kids Meal – with a double cheeseburger, fries and chocolate milk: 840 calories and 37 grams of fat.
Wendy's Kids' Meal – A chicken sandwich, fries and a chocolate Frosty: 770 calories and 34 grams of fat.
KFC Kids' Meal – Popcorn Chicken, potato wedges, string cheese and soda: 800 calories, 1,800 mg of sodium.
A&W Kids' Meal – cheeseburger, fries and soda: 780 calories and 9 grams of saturated fat.
Burger King's BK Kids – Breakfast muffin sandwich meal: 95 mg of cholesterol, and it exceeds the recommended daily allowance of sodium.

The Most Exotic McDonald's Meals

The McRib may be back, but how would you like to try a Maharajah Mac, McCurry Pan, or Wasabi Filet-O-Fish?

They may sound like the kind of faux-McDonald’s dishes you'd see in a comedy film set in India or somewhere in Asia, but, believe it or not, they’re actual items served at McDonald's restaurants in - surprise, surprise - India and Asia.

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