Business Management CASE STUDY

CURRICULUM
TOPICS GLOSSARY
• Research

4.5 • Development
• Strategic planning
5.6 • Product strategy

McDonald’s
Corporation
http://www.businessinsider.com/mcdonalds-international-menu-items-2015-7

26 Crazy McDonald’s Items You Can’t get in

America
Around the world, people eat a whole variety of food items at McDonald's. McDonald's is a
global phenomenon.

While many McDonald's restaurants around the world serve the signature burger and their own
spins on the Big Mac, many global outposts offer completely different items. Many are specific
to each country's cuisines — and most look far more interesting than items on the American
menu.

These are some items you can order should you find yourself in an international McDonald's.

McDonald's India's Veg Pizza McPuff

McDonald's India offers many vegetarian items, from the McVeggie to the
Veg Pizza McPuff, which features tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, and an
array of vegetables. Many international McDonald's sell veggie-friendly items,
but American McDonald's do not, because they do not sell well here.

1
 Business Management CASE STUDY

CURRICULUM
TOPICS GLOSSARY
• Research

4.5 • Development
• Strategic planning
5.6 • Product strategy

McDonald's India's McPaneer Royale

According to McDonald's India's website, "McDonald's has developed a

menu especially for India with vegetarian selections to suit the Indian palate,
and has also re-engineered its operations to address the special
requirements of vegetarians." Further proof, another vegetarian item: the
McPaneer Royale, which features paneer cheese, lettuce, tomato, jalapeno peppers, and a
cheese-and-onion sauce.

McDonald's Japan's chicken veggie burger

McDonald's Japan has a chicken veggie burger, which features a fusion of

chicken, soybeans, and vegetables.

McDonald's Thailand's Samurai Pork Burger

People love the Samurai Pork Burger (called the Samurai Burger in
Singapore and Malaysia). According to Travelling McD's, it makes
promotional appearances on the menu every year.

McDonald's Japan's The Shakachiki Red Pepper chicken

The Shakachiki Red Pepperchicken is a chicken patty with red pepper sauce you
can sprinkle on at your discretion.

McDonald's Japan's Gracoro burger

The Gracoro burger is a recurring burger in Japan with cheese, shrimp,

and macaroni in a croquette.

2
 Business Management CASE STUDY

CURRICULUM
TOPICS GLOSSARY
• Research

4.5 • Development
• Strategic planning
5.6 • Product strategy

McDonald's UK's Mozzarella Dippers.

McDonald's restaurants in the UK sell Mozzarella Dippers—

McDonald's spin on the classic appetizer mozzarella sticks.
McDonald's is testing this item in America.

McDonald's Malaysia's Burbur Ayam McD

In Malaysia, you can order Burbur Ayam McD, McDonald's spin on a

Malaysian dish. It features chicken on top of porridge, and it is topped
with onions, ginger, shallots, and chilies.

McDonald's Spain's gazpacho

In Spain, you can dine on gazpacho at McDonald's, which is definitely a

lighter option than a burger.

McDonald's Korea's shrimp burger

In Korea, you can get a Double Deluxe Shrimp Burger if the regular Deluxe
Shrimp Burgerisn't enough for you.

McDonald's Croatia's tzatziki wrap

McDonald's Croatia offers items such as a tzatziki beef wrap.

McDonald's Portugal's soups

McDonald's Portugal offers soup as an alternative to burgers, including

the bean and spinach soup.

3
 Business Management CASE STUDY

CURRICULUM
TOPICS GLOSSARY
• Research

4.5 • Development
• Strategic planning
5.6 • Product strategy

McDonald's Canada's poutine

In Canada, you can get poutine. This past June, the chain offered an
outrageous take on the classic dish by infusing it with maple and bacon.

McDonald's New Zealand Georgie Pie

McDonald's New Zealand sells Georgie Pies, a New Zealand

classic. You can get a Steak Mince 'n' Cheese pie (pictured right) or
other variations like the Chicken 'N' Vegetable and Apple 'N'
Blackberry pies.

McDonald's Costa Rica's McPinto Deluxe

McDonald's Costa Rica offers a different spin on breakfast— the McPinto

Deluxe, which serves up rice and beans, eggs, plantains, a tortilla, and
sour cream.

McDonald's Hong Kong's pasta

In Hong Kong, you can order Sausage 'n Egg Twisty Pasta, which is
exactly what it sounds like.

McDonald's Greece's Greek Mac

The Greek Mac is a Mediterranean take on the burger, with a pita stuffed with
two beef patties and yogurt sauce.

4
 Business Management CASE STUDY

CURRICULUM
TOPICS GLOSSARY
• Research

4.5 • Development
• Strategic planning
5.6 • Product strategy

McDonald's Sweden's chili cheese bites

In Sweden, you can get Chili Cheese Tops— similar to the appetizer jalapeno
poppers, only without jalapenos, and with McDonald's flair.

McDonald's Mexico's McMollette

McDonald's Mexico is famous for its McMollette, an open-faced breakfast

sandwich with beans, cheese, and sauce.

McDonald's France's desserts

McDonald's France has a knockout dessert menu that includes macaroons and
cheesecake.

McDonald's Middle East's McArabia

The McArabia is sold in many countries, including Egypt and Pakistan. The
chicken version features two chicken patties, lettuce, onions, tomatoes,
and garlic sauce in between a pita.

McDonald's Switzerland's shrimp

McDonald's Switzerland sells fried shrimp.

McDonald's Netherlands' McKroket

In the Netherlands, you can order the McKroket, which features a patty with stew
and beef, topped with mustard sauce.
5
 Business Management CASE STUDY

CURRICULUM
TOPICS GLOSSARY
• Research

4.5

• Development
• Strategic planning
5.6
• Product strategy

McDonald's Germany's McToast

For breakfast, you can order a McToast Chocolate— pancakes folded up like a
sandwich with chocolate spread in between.

McDonalds works alongside their suppliers and customers so that they can be aware of what
are necessary developments in order to set new quality standards. Research is an important
step in the process. McDonalds frequently talks to customers; they value this as a key aspect in
the development of McDonalds restaurants. Research is undertaken for purposes of strategic
planning, they conduct their research in terms of performance in key areas such as; Quality,
Service, Cleanliness and Value. This research shows what customers want from the restaurant
chain. An example would be the launch of the new ‘McCafé’ specialty coffee menu in 2008,
which is a product of recent development and market research. This was designed to offer new
options to existing customers, and also to entice a new type of customer, busy business people
who get coffees in the mornings. The creation of new products and services, in food service
and catering, is an essential part of business.

How did McDonal

A Better French Fry

locations?
When it first started to expand during the 1950s, McDonald’s had a french fry problem.
Suppliers were providing the same russet potatoes. They used precisely the same soaking and

Was the creation o

cooking techniques. But still, some french fries were perfect while others were too soggy.

Millions of dollars and hundreds of hours later, McDonald’s researchers realized that their
potatoes had to be stored for three weeks so that enough sugars could turn to starches. Next,

growth internation
6
 Business Management CASE STUDY

CURRICULUM
TOPICS GLOSSARY
• Research

4.5

• Development
• Strategic planning
5.6
• Product strategy

moving closer to a solution, they made sure the raw fries and the oil temperatures were
identical from restaurant to restaurant. Finally though, It turned out that the french fries cooked
perfectly whenever the oil temperature rose no more than three degrees above its lowest
point. With an electrical sensor that maintained the three-degree difference, they were able to
make what we now know are McDonald’s fries.

Later, they applied the same technology to Chicken McNuggets and Filet-O-Fish as well.

A Better Potato Chip

Looking for a better potato chip, Wise (maker of chips, cheese doodles, you know) joined with
the USDA and Pennsylvania State University to develop a potato that would “chip” perfectly.
The result (in 1967) was a hybrid called the Lenape with the right amount of sugars and
starches. Unbeknownst to the breeders though, was one detail. The characteristics that created
a potato that “chipped golden” also made it high in an alkaloid called solanine–three times
higher than the typical russet. Too much solanine made people sick. They become nauseous,
get diarrhea, and could die. Wise never did sell chips made from the Lenape and in 1970, it
was withdrawn from the market.

But, the Lenape potato furthered our knowledge of the toxins that exist naturally in our
everyday foods.

Where are we going? To food R&D.

Like other R&D, food processing successes and failures are technological springboards.
Seemingly trivial compared to computer chips, french fry and potato chip research can have an
impact that ripples through the economy.

The Bottom Line: Research and Development

Providing a lens for explaining the value of research, Harvard professor Clay Christensen said,
“empowering, sustaining and efficiency”. An empowering innovation transforms our landscape
like the Ford Model T and cloud computing. When we think of sustaining, new products that
7
 Business Management CASE STUDY

CURRICULUM
TOPICS GLOSSARY
• Research

4.5 • Development
• Strategic planning
5.6 • Product strategy

replace old ones like the Prius should come to mind. And lastly, efficiency, predictably
diminishes production costs.

Product Development Strategy for McDonald's

by Wendel Clark

When you are running a small business, it is easy to look at chains like McDonald's with disdain,
but there is a lot that you can learn from their success. Part of the success enjoyed by
McDonald's stems from their product development strategy. By familiarizing yourself with the
way McDonald's develops products, you can apply the same methods to your own products
whether they are food products or other consumer goods.
Permanent Product Strategy

McDonald's features several products on their menu that are permanent and do not change.
Examples of this include their basic hamburger and cheeseburger, the Big Mac and the Quarter
Pounder. After the initial development, these items remain on the menu for extended periods
of time without undergoing significant changes. This strategy ensures that there is always
something familiar for consumers on the menu.
Temporary Product Strategy

In addition to its permanent product offerings, McDonald's regularly develops temporary

products. The McRib, for example, is a product that is offered only seasonally. The Big Ocean
burger is an example of a burger that was developed as a temporary product, offered only for
a few months in 2007. The purpose of this product development strategy is to give customers
something new to experience on each visit and to experiment with new items that may become
permanent.
Local Product Development Strategy

As McDonald's has expanded internationally, it has created several products to meet consumer
demand in the local markets. In the Netherlands, for example, they have developed the
McKroket, a burger featuring a typically Dutch kroket, a deep-fried, ragout-filled patty. In the
Canadian province of Quebec, McDonald's offers poutine, a traditional dish of french fries,
gravy and curd cheese. Even in parts of New England and Atlantic Canada, they have

8
 Business Management CASE STUDY

CURRICULUM
TOPICS GLOSSARY
• Research

4.5 • Development
• Strategic planning
5.6 • Product strategy

developed the McLobster, their version of the local lobster roll sandwich. This strategy ensures
that local customers have foods to fit their tastes.
Local Adaptation Strategy

In addition to developing new products for local markets, McDonald's will also use an
adaptation strategy whereby they take a product and modify it to fit local tastes. In India, for
instance, the Big Mac has been modified into the Maharaja Mac which contains no beef, in
keeping with local diets. In Greece, the Big Mac has been adapted to use a pita bread instead
of a bun. Even the McLobster has been adapted to the McCrab in some U.S. markets where
crab is a common food.

Describe how the