A top McDonald\u2019s executive is weighing in on claims that the company has jacked up its prices.<\/p>\n
Joe Erlinger, president of McDonald\u2019s USA, said in an open letter Wednesday that the average price of McDonald\u2019s menu items is up around 40% since 2019. The breakdown comes in response to claims on social media from House Republicans, among others, that the fast-food company upped prices by more than 100%. <\/p>\n
\u201cAmericans across the country are making tough calls about where to spend their hard-earned money,\u201d Erlinger said. \u201cAnd while we\u2019ve been working hard to make sure our fans have great reasons to visit us, it\u2019s clear that we \u2014 together with our franchisees \u2014 must remain laser-focused on value and affordability.\u201d<\/p>\n
Erlinger said the average price of a Big Mac meal today is $9.29, up 27% from $7.29 in 2019. The price for a 10-piece McNuggets meal is up 28% over the same period, and the price of medium french fries increased 44%.<\/p>\n
Erlinger added the cost increases are tied to similar increases in input costs such as crew salaries and cost of goods.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor 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,\u201d Erlinger said.<\/p>\n
Consumer prices have increased 3.4% over the past year, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In response to persistently steeper costs, some consumers are pulling back across the restaurant industry, a trend that has not spared the fast-food giant.<\/p>\n
McDonald\u2019s recently reported same-store sales below expectations in its first-quarter earnings report. The company will also soon offer a $5 value meal for roughly a month, beginning June 25.<\/p>\n
That offering will include a McChicken or McDouble, four-piece chicken nuggets, fries and a drink, CNBC previously reported.<\/p>\n
Analysts at BTIG characterized the promotion as being more about value perception than a profit driver.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn our view, this new deal is more about value perception, seeking to change the media narrative around McDonald\u2019s recent price hikes to refocus around a deep(er) value offering. We believe the new one-month meal deal could actually hurt sales (check decline) and margins, but help reinstate McDonald\u2019s as a value leader in the industry,\u201d the analysts said in an investor note.<\/p>\n
An independent advocacy group of McDonald\u2019s franchisees is pushing to make the discounted offering sustainable for operators, saying it will require greater investment from the company if it sticks around menus beyond the initial monthlong run.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere simply is not enough profit to discount 30% for this model to be sustainable. It necessitates a financial contribution by McDonalds,\u201d the board of the National Owners Association wrote in a letter to membership that was viewed by CNBC.<\/p>\n
\u2014 CNBC\u2019s Kate Rogers contributed to this report.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A top McDonald\u2019s executive is weighing in on claims that the company has jacked up its prices. Joe Erlinger, president of McDonald\u2019s USA, said in an open letter Wednesday that the average price of McDonald\u2019s menu items is up around 40% since 2019. The breakdown comes in response to claims on social media from House Republicans, among others, that the <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3921,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-3920","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3920","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3920"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3920\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3921"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3920"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3920"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3920"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}