McDonald’s says price increase reports overstated

Fast food chain McDonald’s pushed back on claims about its price increases, seeking to “make sure the real facts are available.”

“Recently, we have seen viral social posts and poorly sourced reports that McDonald’s has raised prices significantly beyond inflationary rates,” Joe Erlinger, the president of McDonald’s USA, said in an open letter dated Tuesday. “This is inaccurate. And for a brand that proudly serves nearly 90% of the U.S. population every year, we feel a responsibility to make sure the real facts are available.”

“I can tell you that it frustrates and worries me, and many of our franchisees, when I hear about an $18 Big Mac meal being sold — even if it was at one location in the U.S. out of more than 13,700,” Erlinger continued. “More worrying, though, is when people believe that this is the rule and not the exception, or when folks start to suggest that the prices of a Big Mac have risen 100% since 2019.”

The company was responding to viral social media posts and media reports it says overstated its increases in prices, according to The Associated Press. 

“Inflationary pressures have affected all sectors of the economy, including ours. Our franchisees (who own and operate more than 95% of all restaurants in the U.S.) set menu prices for their restaurants, which account for the increased costs of running their businesses,” Erlinger continued. “In doing so, they work hard to minimize the impact of price increases on our fans. This includes the everyday prices on our restaurant menu boards to special limited-time offers.”

Inflation, however, may not be the only economic pressure the fast food giant is worried about at the moment. McDonald’s said in a fourth quarter and full-year 2023 report released in February that sales in its licensed markets business, which includes most of its Middle East locations, only increased by 0.7 percent in the last quarter. It said the low number reflected “the impact of the war” between Israel and Hamas.

Chris Kempczinski, McDonald’s CEO, said in an earnings call at the time that his company was witnessing the “most pronounced impact” in the Middle East alongside other Muslim countries, including Indonesia and Malaysia.