• From Hamburger University to public riots over a lack of Hello Kitty toys, we count
15 fun and fascinating facts about the fast food chain very well known around the globe
15 - McJob • The well-known dictionary Merriam-Webster
added the term McJob to its line-up, defined as "a low-paying job that requires little
skill and provides little opportunity for advancement"
• McDonald's immediately called for its removal since the term clearly sullied their
line of employment, but Merriam-Webster held fast with the response "we stand by the accuracy
and appropriateness of our definition" • Oooooh, burn
14 - Employee Pay Gap • During the last 10 years, the pay gap
between McDonald CEOs and its workers has doubled
• In fact, it's gotten so bad that some employees continue to hold strikes demanding
higher wages simply to get by on the monetary scraps flung down from the executive table
• With living costs rising, and wages remaining the same, some even resort to working at multiple
McDonalds just to survive • Tragic in my opinion
13 - McDonald Arches • Unbelievably, in a poll conducted by Sponsorship
Research International, they found 88 percent of the population could identify the yellow
McDonald arches, but only 54 percent recognised the cross that crucified Jesus Christ
• This is due to the heavy marketing budget allotted to McDonalds: over 2 billion dollars,
extending through television, the internet and public advertisements
• Even crazier is that 96 of children from schools could identify Ronald McDonald, more
than any other fictional character ever only beaten out by Santa Claus
12 - The Original Business for McDonalds • It seems obvious to everyone that Maccas
is a fast food restaurant and nothing else, but if you were to ask the original founder
from 1974, Ray Kroc, that very question, he would reply with the answer, well actually
no, the purpose of McDonalds is real estate • That's right - the primary focus of his
business was location, location, location, followed by marketing, brand recognition and
finally the food itself • He knew from the very beginning that a
poorly placed restaurant would fail, but a colourful restaurant with a logo that extends
into the sky would be noticed by EVERYONE 11 - McDonalds originally didn't have drive-thrus
• It's so commonplace to us now that it's hard to imagine a Maccas without the drive-thru
• But it was in 1975, near an Arizona military base, that one building incorporated a drive-thru
simply to let the soldiers stationed there buy food, since at the time, they weren't
allowed to leave their car while dressed in fatigues
• From that point, it worked out so well that almost all future McDonalds would feature
a drive-thru - and the idea of "fast" food took hold
10 - Marketing towards kids • It's likely never occurred to you, but
a lot of criticism has been levelled at McDonalds because of how heavily they market towards
kids • Why?
Well, if you think about it, things like Happy Meals and the toy bundles are actually a way
to market to the younger generation, thus, gaining life-long customers
• In fact, this is the very reason they do - and even a documentary like Super Size
Me can't stop the juggernaut business from snagging its delicious, juicy hooks into a
child's mind 9 - Hamburgerology
• This sounds like something a satirical film, but it's very much true
• In Chicago, Illinois, a place called Hamburger University was set up in 1961 as a training
facility to teach before how to flip burgers, and tens of thousands of students flock here
to learn • They can teach in 28 different languages
how to say "would you like fries with that" and even offers college credit
• Here's hoping someone opens a Video Game University where you can learn how to play
Tetris and get a degree for it 8 - Paying Rappers to reference the Big Mac
in Songs • This is part of their overarching marketing
campaign - to subtly wing musicians some nickles merely at the mention of a Big Mac, whether
referencing the burger or otherwise it didn't matter
• Every time one of their songs was played with Big Mac referenced, they'd receive five
bucks, which quickly adds up when you have tons of radio stations playing their music
• The organisation Campaign for Commercial Free Childhood were concerned about getting
musical icons to promote unhealthy food, but at least we don't have to hear the latest
Bowie album about a man called Mac making it big
7 - Hello Kitty Riot • This was a promotion in Singapore to give
out Hello Kitty dolls dressed in wedding gowns • The problem was the dolls were so popular
that they exceeded supply, even to the point where people would pay for a meal only to
discard it purely so they could keep the doll • It got so bad that there was even a riot
where seven people were injured after the crowd surged through a plate-glass door, and
it wasn't even the first time • Apparently, people really love Hello Kitty
6 - Hot Coffee Lawsuits • This is a very well-known scandal from
the history of McDonalds, where in 1992 a 79 year old customer was drinking her coffee
when she spilled it and gave herself third-degree burns
• She sued McDonalds and won, awarded the grand total of a half-million dollars
• Very soon after, other lawsuits came flying in from people desperate to get their own
slice of the legal goldmine, and it continues to this day
5 - A Million Pounds of McDonalds Beef consumed per year
• This one is damaging, not only to health, but also to the environment
• It's known that McDonalds is the largest purchaser of pork and beef in the United States,
and over 5 million cattle are consumed at the restaurants annually
• It takes 7 million tons of grain to produce 1 million tons of meat, a huge waste of resources
that subsequently leads to deforestation, methane emissions and heavy chemical use
4 - The Paris White McDonalds Logo • This one I've seen for myself, a McDonalds
in Paris, France, featuring a white logo in place of the traditional yellow one - it's
actually where I first learned the meaning of the word "merci" since it was printed on
the McDonald bins • It's highly uncommon to see any variation
on the traditional yellow logo, and the only reason you see it here is because it wants
to fit in with the rest of the white street • But you'll also find McDonalds in Times
Square with neon lights and an Arizonan one with green arches
3 - The Single Cheese • This one took place in Holland, where
a customer at McDonalds asked for a hamburger than asked for a slice of cheese too
• The employee obliged, but was then fired because they didn't charge the full price
for a cheeseburger - simply because they slipped the customer an extra piece of cheese
• The employee took McDonalds to court and won nearly $6000, with the court saying a
warning should've sufficed, not termination 2 - Some Products Bombed
• There are enough failed McDonalds products to warrant an entirely separate video, but
let's focus on one in particular: the McLobster • It was essentially, a pile of lobster
meat slapped into a hot dog bun covered in sauce and lettuce - and cost $6, for a dressed-up
sandwich • You can still find these in select Maccas
around New England and Canada though, but it NEVER took off
1 - McDonalds serve awesome things overseas • Each region of the world supplements the
menu with their own personal flair, such as the Red Bean Pie in Hong Kong, or the Indian
Chicken Maharaja because they generally don't serve beef, or the French stone oven-baked
Ciabatta roll burgers • And, of course, in Germany, they also
sell beer