London, Jan 7: Despite concerns about bulging waistlines and childhood obesity, the UK outlets of fast food giant McDonald’s is selling more burgers than at any time since it arrived in Britain 34 years ago

The US fast-food chain is making money like never before, as the estimates reveal that there were more than 88 million visited McDonald outlets around the UK last month alone.

In the previous year, the figure was nearly 10 million and sales in this financial year are growing at close to the fastest rate since the late 1980s.

The estimates mark a big turnaround for McDonald’s, which bounced back to take on the hearts and wallets of customers after negative publicity about fat content in its food.

“The business had stalled. We weren’t reacting to the signals we were getting. This is one of our strongest years for 20 years, and we feel pretty confident about the momentum we have built up,” Times Online quoted Steve Easterbrook, the chief executive of McDonald’s UK, as saying.

The reason for the growing business is also McDonald’s changed menu, with arrivals including porridge, smoothies and chicken wraps.

But its traditional food items like burgers, fries and ice-creams continue to be the most popular choices by far, accounting for about 90 per cent of all sales.

Each week in November, more than two million kids’ “Happy Meals” were sold.

Colin Waine, chairman of the National Obesity Forum, said: “My reaction is one of despair. There’s been enough publicity about the relentless rise and impact of obesity, but from the figures it seems the public are choosing to ignore them.”

Richard Watts, of Sustain, the food and farming alliance, said: “McDonald’s has been slightly better than other fast-food companies but the majority of their business is still old-fashioned burger and fries. It seems the public’s intentions are better than their actions and underline the fact we need to go further and faster to persuade people to lead a healthy diet.”

According to McDonalds, people were not necessarily eating more burgers than before, but visiting the place more often than its competitors. The company has reduced salt and sugar levels in its food. Trans-fats have been cut while fruit bags have gone into Happy Meals.

Easterbrook said: “We are in a sector that is incredibly competitive, with more new entrants all the time. I think the range and scale of change in the business is making it difficult for our competitors to keep up.”

“The issue of obesity is complex and absolutely one our society is facing, there’s no denial about that. The Government has a part to play, individuals have a responsibility and so does the food and drink industry. These are the three pillars that need to work together and demonstrate they have a commitment to solving the issue,” he added.
(ANI)