McDonald’s issued a press release on June 1 formally announcing a $10 million settlement of five separate lawsuits brought against the company in a dispute over whether or not its french fries were vegetarian.
In 1990 McDonald’s began using vegetable oil to cook its french fries. At the time, McDonald’s made the change due to concerns over cholesterol but many people were lead to believe the french fries did not contain any animal products. In fact, flavoring is added to the french fries during processing that contains a beef extract.
In its press release, McDonald’s said,
We acknowledge that, upon our switch to vegetable oil in the early 1990’s for the purpose of reducing cholesterol, mistakes were made in communicating to the public and customers about the ingredients in our French fries and hash browns. Those mistakes included instances in which French fries and hash browns sold at U.S. restaurants were improperly identified as “vegetarian.”
McDonald’s also announced it was creating a panel to advise it about restrictive diets in the future.
Sources:
McDonald’s to pay $10M to vegetarians.. CNN, June 5, 2002.
Apology Related to French Fry Litigation Settlement. McDonald’s, Press Release, June 1, 2002.