McDonald’s says price increase reports overstated

Fast food chain McDonald’s has denied the claims about price gouging and called for “the true facts to emerge.”

“Recently, there have been social media posts and unsubstantiated reports circulating that McDonald’s has increased prices significantly above the rate of inflation,” said Joe Erlinger, president of McDonald’s USA. Said In an open letter dated Tuesday, the company said, “This is inaccurate, and as a brand that proudly serves approximately 90% of the U.S. population each year, we feel we have a responsibility to set the record straight.”

“It frustrates and concerns me and many of our franchisees when we hear about an $18 Big Mac being sold, even if it’s just one of our more than 13,700 locations in the U.S.,” Erlinger continued. “But what’s even more concerning is that people will believe this is the rule rather than the exception, or that people will start saying the price of a Big Mac has gone up 100% since 2019.”

The company Faced The Associated Press said social media posts and media reports had exaggerated the price increases.

“Inflationary pressures are affecting all sectors of the economy, including our industry. Our franchisees (who own and operate more than 95 percent of all restaurants in the United States) set the menu prices for their restaurants, which contributes to increased costs of doing business for them,” Erlinger continued. “In doing so, they are working hard to minimize the impact of price increases on their fans. This includes the everyday prices posted on our restaurant menu boards to limited-time special offers.”

But inflation may not be the only economic pressure the fast-food giant is currently concerned about. In its fourth-quarter and full-year 2023 report released in February, McDonald’s said sales in its licensed markets business, which includes most of its Middle Eastern restaurants, rose just 0.7% last quarter. The company said the lower figure reflected the “impact of the war” between Israel and Hamas.

McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said on an earnings call at the time that the company was seeing the “most notable impact” in the Middle East, along with other Muslim countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia.