McDonald's unhappy with Prince Charles' ban idea

Los Angeles, Mar 01: Memo from McDonald's Corp to the Prince of Wales. We are not amused. McDonald's said today it was disappointed by Prince Charles'statement that the hamburger chain should be banned, adding that theheir to the British throne was unfamiliar with its recent efforts tointroduce healthier fare.

Earlier this week, Prince Charles suggested during a visit to theImperial College London Diabetes Centre in Abu Dhabi that McDonald's,often criticized over its high-fat menu choices, should be banned.

''Have you got anywhere with McDonald's? Have you tried getting itbanned? That's the key,'' the prince said to a nutritionist at thecenter.

''The comment made by the Prince of Wales appears to be anoff-the-cuff remark that, in our opinion, does not reflect either ourmenu or where we are at as a business,'' Nick Hindle, a spokesman forMcDonald's UK business, said in an e-mailed statement.

A spokesman for Prince Charles said ''he was keen to emphasise theneed for children to enjoy the widest variety of food and not to eatany particular sort of food to excess.'' Prince Charles has long beenan advocate of organic food, running an organic farm on his homeestate. Late last year, he published a cookbook in which he aimed torebel against what he called the ''soulless, mass-produced food thathad come to dominate the modern diet.''

But McDonald's said the futureking was ''clearly unaware of some of the moves we have made over timeto improve choice and variety on our menu ... including theintroduction of fruit, carrot sticks, salads and organic milk.'' Thehamburger chain added that it has ''made great progress in support ofsustainable agriculture.''

Reuters