Better Health for All

In late 2024, an E. coli outbreak linked to Quarter Pounder hamburgers, traced to contaminated onions from a supplier, prompted McDonald's to implement a $100 million plan to regain trust

. Despite this, the company has made efforts to improve the nutritional profile of its Happy Meal offerings. These efforts included introducing 70 new options such as fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy, whole grains, lean proteins, and water , leading to global reductions in average calories (6%) , sodium (9%) , saturated fats (15%) , and added sugars (26%) in Happy Meals. Furthermore, nutrition information for Happy Meal offerings is accessible on market websites and mobile apps , and in 2023, 99% of Happy Meal bundles shown in advertisements met the company's Global Nutrition Criteria .

Fair Pay & Worker Respect

In May 2023, the U.S. Department of Labor found that three McDonald's franchisees in Kentucky employed over 300 children in violation of labor laws.

This included two 10-year-olds working without pay until 2 a.m. and operating deep fryers, tasks prohibited for workers under 16. The franchisees were fined a total of $212,000 for these substantiated violations. In contrast, McDonald's has demonstrated strong performance in pay equity. Its 2023 pay gap analysis indicated that women globally in company-owned and operated markets were paid 99.96 cents on the dollar in base pay compared to men for similar work. The company also reported achieving gender pay equity at all levels by January 2025, with no base pay gap disfavoring underrepresented groups in the U.S.

Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing

No direct evidence was found in the provided articles that quantitatively maps to the defined Key Performance Indicators for Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing. Information regarding specific commodity sourcing percentages (e.g., coffee, packaging, beef, fish, soy, palm oil) was provided, but not as an aggregated percentage of total tier-1 spend or overall high-risk materials spend. Commitments for future actions, such as the adoption of an audit protocol effective in January 2025

and a supplier diversity target by 2025, were noted but do not represent current or past performance.

Honest & Fair Business

McDonald's Corporation has not incurred any ethics-related regulatory fines in the past three years. In January 2023, the company cooperated with the SEC regarding charges against its former CEO for making false and misleading statements, avoiding fines and recovering $105 million in compensation, which demonstrated accountability.

McDonald's maintains a Global Anti-Corruption Policy that ensures compliance with anti-bribery laws across its global operations. This policy includes annual compliance certifications and regular training on Standards of Business Conduct and anti-bribery laws. However, the policy's coverage and training are not explicitly described as customized for high-risk areas or including third-party monitoring. Separately, in 2023, McDonald's franchises faced fines totaling $289,572 for child labor violations in Kentucky, Louisiana, and Texas. The FTC also noted significant concerns from McDonald's operators in July 2024 regarding unfair business practices and silence agreements. Additionally, a January 2023 court decision recognized an officer-level fiduciary duty of oversight following allegations of sexual misconduct against a former executive.

Kind to Animals

McDonald's has achieved 100% cage-free egg sourcing in the U.S. by the end of 2023, two years ahead of its 2025 target

, and also in Canada for specific products , Australia, France, and Germany in 2024 . The company phased out 100% of gestation stalls for pregnant sows in its U.S. pork supply by the end of 2024 . It has achieved eight Broiler Welfare Commitments across in-scope markets by the end of 2024 , impacting over 59% of its global chicken supply as of the end of 2024 , which include Enrichment & Lighting Guidelines and Controlled Atmospheric Stunning in the U.S. and Canada (100% in Canada) . McDonald's reduced total antibiotic use in its global poultry supply chain by 47% since 2019 and eliminated Highest-Priority Critically Important Antibiotics in chicken supply in several major markets . The company is a founding member of multiple industry groups, including the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef and the International Poultry Welfare Alliance , and endorsed antimicrobial use stewardship principles in 2023 . McDonald's is investing $200 million over seven years , which is approximately 0.11% of its 2024 annual revenue , in the Grassland Resilience and Conservation Initiative to improve wildlife habitats across 4 million acres .

No War, No Weapons

McDonald's core business is foodservice, and there is no evidence of revenue derived from arms or defense contracts, nor is there evidence of exposure to controversial or banned weapons. In 2023, the McDonald's Israel franchise provided free meals to the Israel Defense Forces during the Israel-Gaza conflict, which led to significant backlash and global calls for boycotts

. Following this, McDonald's Corporation announced plans to purchase all Israeli outlets in 2024 . In 2015, McDonald's supported a global campaign for the United Nations World Food Programme on International Peace Day, which aimed to raise funds for refugees affected by conflicts .

Planet-Friendly Business

The company's total Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions were 60,254,548 tCO₂e in 2023, comprising 100,264 tCO₂e for Scope 1, 224,964 tCO₂e for Scope 2, and 59,929,320 tCO₂e for Scope 3.

McDonald's has committed to achieving net zero emissions across global operations by 2050. Interim targets include a 50.4% reduction in absolute Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030 from a 2018 baseline, and a 16% reduction in agriculture-linked emissions by 2030. , The company sources 86.7% of primary guest packaging from renewable, recycled, or certified materials as of 2023, with a goal of 100% by 2025. Virgin fossil fuel-based plastic in Happy Meal toys was reduced by 63.7% as of 2023. Renewable energy initiatives include covering 100% of the U.S. logistics supply chain's electricity load with renewable energy as of December 2022 and installing rooftop solar at 100 Drive-Thru restaurants in Malaysia. Regenerative agriculture initiatives are also underway.

Respect for Cultures & Communities

McDonald's has faced multiple accusations of cultural appropriation. In May 2022, its 'Australiano' coffee, incorporating native wattleseed, was criticized for a lack of acknowledgment of Indigenous cultural history

. In December 2020, the 'Jerk Chicken Sandwich' faced accusations of not authentically representing traditional Jamaican jerk seasoning . The 'Worldwide Favorites' menu in June 2019 drew backlash for appropriating local dishes without proper acknowledgment . In May 2017, the 'Great Tastes of America' burger series, including the 'South Carolina Stack', led to similar accusations . Additionally, in August 2002, the 'McAfrika' burger was criticized for insensitivity during an African famine . In a positive engagement, McDonald's partnered with The Chicago Community Trust to invest $3.5 million in 40 Chicago-based nonprofit organizations in September 2022, supporting local Black and Latinx youth . The company also contributed $1 million to Operation HOPE's '1865 Project' in April 2023 for national financial literacy initiatives and launched the Black & Positively Golden Change Leaders program in February 2023 to empower young Black leaders .

Safe & Smart Tech

McDonald's faced a data breach in March 2023 affecting 4.87 million customers in South Korea

, leading to a fine for insufficient access controls, failure to destroy expired personal data, and delayed notifications . An alleged major data breach also surfaced in January 2024, claiming access to employee and customer information, internal tools, and bank logs . The company was subject to a lawsuit in 2021 for alleged unauthorized collection of biometric data via AI drive-thru systems without consent, violating Illinois' BIPA , though this lawsuit was dismissed in July 2023 . McDonald's ended its partnership for these AI systems in June 2024 due to mixed success and issues like incorrect orders , serving as a remediation for algorithmic harms. The company has implemented a comprehensive AI governance strategy, including risk assessments and managing model life cycles , and its AI strategy emphasizes a deliberate pace, thorough testing, and cross-functional collaboration . However, it failed to destroy expired personal data for 766,846 customers in South Korea and faced allegations of lacking a publicly available data retention policy for biometrics . McDonald's launched a Security Champions program in March 2024 to boost employee cybersecurity awareness in the U.S.

Zero Waste & Sustainable Products

By the end of 2023, McDonald's sourced 86.7% of its packaging from sustainable materials

. The company achieved a 63.7% reduction in plastic for Happy Meal toys . Waste reduction initiatives include the introduction of reusable tableware in France , sorting bins in 60% of Romania locations , and the recycling of over 320 tons of cooking oil in Romania . McDonald's aims to source 100% of its primary guest packaging from renewable, recycled, or certified materials by 2025 and reduce material usage by 20% by 2030 .