DEVELOPING Jasper updates: Wildfire reaches townsite
One of two wildfires threatening Jasper National Park has reached the townsite.
McDonald’s is fighting back against viral tweets and media reports that it says have exaggerated its price increases.
In a post on the company’s website Wednesday, McDonald’s U.S. President Joe Erlinger said reports suggesting the price of the average Big Mac has doubled since 2019 were false. McDonald’s said the average U.S. Big Mac was $4.39 in 2019 and now costs US$5.29, a 20.5 per cent increase.
“For a brand that proudly serves nearly 90 per cent of the U.S. population every year, we feel a responsibility to make sure the real facts are available,” Erlinger said.
Erlinger acknowledged that he and many franchisees were frustrated by a post on X last summer about a Big Mac meal in Connecticut that cost US$18, calling the price “an exception.” He noted that franchisees own and operate 95 per cent of U.S. McDonald’s locations and set their own pricing but “work hard to minimize the impact of price increases.”
The average U.S. price of a Big Mac meal, which includes a sandwich, fries and a drink, currently is US$9.29.
Still, the Chicago burger giant said the cost of some items have seen bigger price jumps than the Big Mac. The average price of medium fries was US$2.29 in 2019 and is US$3.29 now, a 44 per cent increase.
A photo of a Big Mac, McDonald's signature sandwich. (AP file)
McDonald’s said the average price of all menu items has risen 40 per cent over the last five years, to account for a 40 per cent average increase in the cost of labour, paper and food. That is higher than overall consumer prices, which have increased 21 per cent since December 2019, according to government figures.
McDonald’s saw a marked slowdown in store traffic in the first three months of this year as inflation-weary customers in the U.S. and other big markets ate out less often. As a result, the company promised more deals.
Next month, McDonald’s is expected to introduce a US$5 meal deal across the U.S. that will include a sandwich, a four-piece McNugget, small fries and a small drink.
Erlinger said he hopes customers will find the company’s upcoming deals “meaningful.”
“It’s clear that we — together with our franchisees — must remain laser-focused on value and affordability,” Erlinger said.
One of two wildfires threatening Jasper National Park has reached the townsite.
Alberta has called in the Canadian Armed Forces to help assist with the worsening wildfire situation in the province.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday delivered a solemn call to voters to defend the country's democracy as he laid out in an Oval Office address his decision to drop his bid for reelection and throw his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris.
Staff at a Barrie child care centre say they are frustrated by what they call a local MPP's inadequate response after a car crashed through a window in one of the toddler rooms.
An analyst and an assistant coach with Canada Soccer are being removed from the Canadian Olympic Team and 'sent home immediately,' according to the Canadian Olympic Committee.
After a handful of Australian water polo players tested positive for COVID-19 this week, questions have emerged around how the spread of the disease will be mitigated at the Summer Olympic Games in Paris.
A B.C. man who was hired to help a non-profit build a food hub but instead spent the money on personal expenses – including travel, restaurants, booze and cannabis – has been ordered to pay more than $120,000 in damages.
Two people are dead and two others suffered serious injuries following a shooting that police have described as a 'gun battle' outside a plaza in Scarborough, Ont. early Wednesday morning.
A wildfire is prompting evacuations and highway closures north of Calgary.
A local First Nations elder and veteran is helping to bring the Ojibwe language to a well-known film for the first time.
A cat who fled her Montreal home nearly a decade ago has been reunited with her family after being found in Ottawa.
A woman in Waterloo, Ont. is out thousands of dollars for a car crash she wasn’t involved in.
A swarm of bees living in a lamppost in Winnipeg’s Sage Creek neighbourhood has found a new home for its hive.
Around 100 acres of Manitoba Crown Land near the Saskatchewan border is being returned to the Métis community.
Nova Scotia is suspending the licensed Cape Breton moose hunt for three years due to what the province is calling a “significant drop” in the population.
A well-known childhood prank known as 'nicky nicky nine doors,' or 'ding dong ditch,' has escalated into a more serious game that could lead to charges for some Surrey, B.C. teens.
It's been more than a month since their good friend was seriously hurt in an accident and two teens from Riverview, N.B., are still having a hard time dealing with it.
Halifax bridges have collected thousands of coins from around the world.