McDonald’s is inviting selected members of the public to see its UK supply chain at close quarters
The launch by McDonald’s of its Quality Scouts initiative in the UK, where members of the public will visit its supply chain and “report back” about how food is produced, bears the hallmarks of a PR gimmick. But coming in the wake of the UK’s horsemeat scandal, it is a notable development.
Even though McDonald’s itself was not implicated in the scandal, the initiative has been launched at a time of prevailing distrust.
Speaking to Ethical Corporation, Warren Anderson, vice-president, supply chain, at McDonald’s UK, says: “Unsurprisingly in recent months, consumers have become even more interested in finding out about their food as the supply chains of many leading businesses have come under the spotlight.”
This, he says, is why the company is inviting members of the public to “see for themselves what’s in some of our most popular products and give them the chance to follow the journey from farm to restaurant”.
“The timing of the invitation so close after ‘horsegate’ would strongly suggest that McDonald’s is trying to convince consumers that its food products are traceable and authentic and separate from other heavily processed meat products,” says Prof Chris Elliott, director of the Institute for Global Food Security at Queen’s University Belfast.
Consumer interest
The shock of the scandal aside, there has been generally growing consumer interest in food supply chains.
Indeed, McDonald’s has shown a lead. The company sources only free range eggs, buys all its beef from British and Irish farms and in April 2013 became the first UK restaurant chain to serve 100% Freedom Food pork across its entire menu, winning plaudits even from food campaigners.
Jeanette Longfield, coordinator of food and farming pressure group Sustain, says although “still not perfect” McDonald’s is “streets ahead” of its competitors. Despite describing the Quality Scouts initiative as “a bit gimmicky”, Longfield was not surprised that McDonald’s was the first to make such a move.
McDonald’s also launched the TrackMyMacca’s iPhone app in Australia this year, which allows customers to track the provenance of their orders.
The question is whether others in the UK foodservice, retailing or manufacturing sectors will feel compelled to follow McDonald’s lead. Elliott is pessimistic. “I doubt if that many food companies will follow suit,” he says. Pointing out that McDonald’s “prides itself” on a “very secure supply chain”, he wonders whether other companies “will feel less robust systems should not be open to scrutiny”.
As for the initiative itself, while it can be seen as a move towards greater openness, to describe this as a major step forward in supply chain scrutiny and transparency would be overstating the case. McDonald’s will record the Quality Scouts’ visits and their reports for use on its website – and the fact that it intends to use this material for promotional purposes speaks volumes.
“One wonders if this will be like a school open day when all the good things about it are explained in detail and with enthusiasm,” Elliott says. “I think to have a realistic overview of their supply chains a number of scientific experts should be invited to participate. So how about challenging them to include an expert or two?”
Longfield concurs. “Independent third-party audit frankly is the only thing that matters,” she says. Inviting “ordinary folks to go and have a nosey” is “no substitute for someone who knows the industry and knows what they’re looking for”.