McDonalds Beef Sourcing Farms in UK
McDonald’s wants their customers to enjoy high-quality food sourced from sustainable and ethical resources. McDonalds Beef Sourcing is carefully done from trusted and approved butchery from both dairy and beef herds. McDonald’s uses 100% beef in all their burgers and other beef products from British & Irish Beef Industries.
The beef burgers are prepared from whole cuts of beef from the flanks of both male & female cattle, which are sourced from 16,000+ British and Irish farms. For over a decade, McDonald’s has been working with FAI Farms, which maintains and develops sustainable farming for all food items in the food industry.
100% British and Irish Beef
McDonald’s obtains 100% pure and healthy beef from British and Irish farmers without compromising quality or taste.
- McDonald’s worked with over 20,000 British and Irish farmers who supply the quality cuts of beef for burgers.
- These farmers are approved by nationally recognized farm assurance schemes.
- The beef comes to McDonald’s by first butchering good cuts of beef, then the meat is delivered to McDonald’s restaurants, where the teams know very well how to make delicious-tasting beef burgers.
Different Farmers for supplying McDonalds Beef Sourcing UK:
McDonald’s UK obtains beef from British and Irish farmers, with over 20,000 British and Irish farmers who supply the quality cuts of beef for burgers and other items. McDonald’s works in partnership with many farmers and suppliers. McDonald’s is closely linked with farmers and their work, which is always useful in supplying this fast food chain.
The list of farmers that provide beef to McDonald’s in the UK:
| Scott Aitken (Preston Farm) | Scott’s family produces high-quality beef in Scotland. The farm that he runs, “Preston Farm” is a high-quality beef producer. They ensure high standards of environmental care and animal welfare and receive a premium price for their beef. They are linked to McDonald’s by the Flagship Farmer program. |
| Helen | McDonald’s uses 100% beef in all their burgers and other beef products from British & Irish Beef Farms. The beef that McDonald’s uses in their burgers and other items is supplied by a beef farmer from Buckinghamshire. McDonald’s has a healthy relationship with all farmers who provide them with fresh and pure beef. |
| Lopez Food | Lopez is food-incorporated and has a 30-year relationship with McDonald’s. Supply beef to McDonald’s used to make patties in restaurant |
How does McDonald’s lead improvements in beef sustainability?
McDonald’s takes care of all the ingredients and products they use in their items for a better customer experience.
- By investigating and working with British and Irish farmers, McDonald’s takes various steps to maintain and improve the sustainability of beef, like cutting the carbon footprint of beef.
- To manage McDonalds beef sourcing, it worked with over 20,000 British and Irish farmers who supply quality cuts of beef for burgers.
- McDonald’s burgers are made from 100% British and Irish beef farms, which are approved by nationally recognized farm assurance schemes such as Bord Bia and Red Tractor.
- McDonald’s is committed to leading beef sustainability.
- McDonald’s launched the Feed Forward program after consulting with farmers in 2012 in the UK. This program proved to be beneficial for UK and Irish farmers to establish a more sustainable environment and protect animal welfare. According to this program, McDonald’s works on three keys:
Innovation:
To support Animal Welfare and farm sustainability, McDonald’s invests in the latest research.
- McDonald’s works with suppliers at two innovation farms, one in Ireland and the other in Wales. McDonald’s works to develop blueprints for the sustainability of beef with expertise in cattle genetics, nutrition accounting, and carbon accounting.
- Recently, a project was launched with FAI Farms that focuses on the benefits of applying different regenerative principles to beef farming by using adaptive grazing for beef cattle.
- It is considered to be helpful for soil health, diversity of species and wildlife, reduction of carbon storage, etc.
Illustrating Innovations:
To bring these innovations to farms, McDonald’s illustrates working with suppliers and farmers.
- McDonald’s made some updates in 2021 to the Feed Forward program by including a new sustainable beef network.
- McDonald’s has worked with British and Irish farmers for a long time and meets the farmers several times a year.
- McDonald’s is also working to promote the responsible use of antibiotics and reduce its carbon footprint.
- Moreover, McDonald’s also hosts workshops called “Ready for Change” in partnership with the Prince’s Countryside Funds, which supports beef and other livestock farmers in deciding change management.
Influence Change:
McDonald’s influences its scales to encourage innovations and industry progress.
McDonald’s is a member of the European Roundtable for Beef Sustainability and the UK Cattle Sustainability Platform. These are working toward shaping beef sustainability, and then reporting on the progress through these forums is determined by McDonald’s. The goals and themes of the work are:
- To improve the animal’s health and welfare.
- To Improve the environmental footprint of the farming system
- To improve the resilience of farm business
- To preserve the effectiveness of animal medicine in beef farming
Reducing Emission in McDonald’s Beef Supply Chain
McDonald’s looks for different ways to reduce carbon emissions on over 200 Beef British and Irish Farms. Beef is one of the top three contributors to the overall carbon footprint of our supply chain.
- According to the Climate Change Government’s Committee, the greenhouse gas emissions from UK beef are about half the global average.
- By keeping the focus on different factors like improving animal health, daily live weight gains, and maintaining maximum home-grown feed, farmers can reduce their carbon footprint approximately by 23% over six years, which results in annual savings of over £23,000.
FAQs:
Q. Where does McDonald’s beef come from?
McDonald’s beef comes from many British and Irish farms that provide 100% pure meat. Lopez Food is the company that has provided McDonald’s beef for 30 years.
Q. How old are the cows used by McDonalds Beef Sourcing?
McDonald’s uses 100% beef that is taken from cattle and cows. The age limit or requirement for beef animals is a minimum of eight months. McDonald’s does not accept beef from cows younger than eight months. Before taking the beef, McDonald’s checks everything to meet their specifications.
Q. Is McDonald’s beef grass-fed?
The beef that McDonald’s uses in its burgers and other products comes from farms where a sustainable environment is provided to the animals, and the cattle feed on a grass- and cereal-based diet.
Q. What’s really in a McDonald’s burger?
McDonald’s uses whole cuts of 100% beef from the forequarter and flank to make popular and delicious burgers. The beef comes from over 20,000 British and Irish farms. In the burger, McDonald’s uses a pinch of salt and paper for beef patties, which are cooked from both sides and dressed with different fillings according to the customer’s choice.
