- Tuesday, February 25, 2025
Despite our best efforts, we are not able to get adequate quantities of tomatoes which pass our stringent quality checks, the food chain’s restaurants in Delhi said.
By: Shubham Ghosh
DUE to supply shortages and steeply soaring prices of tomatoes, McDonald’s restaurants in several parts of India have removed the vegetable from their burgers and wraps, Reuters reported.
In some parts of the country, wholesale prices of tomatoes, a staple of traditional Indian cuisine, increased by 288 per cent in a month to Rs 140 (£1.32) per kilogram on Friday (7). Retail prices were also high, forcing buyers to put a check on consumption of tomatoes.
The government has blamed a lean production season when rains affect transport and distribution for the higher tomato prices but it has come after consumers have also seen prices of other essential items such as milk becoming dearer.
Admitting the challenge it is facing in procuring enough tomatoes, red notices posted in McDonald’s stores in New Delhi read, “Despite our best efforts, we are not able to get adequate quantities of tomatoes which pass our stringent quality checks,” the Reuters report added.
“We are forced to serve you products without tomatoes.”
According to store managers, the problem was being caused by quality issues in the supply chain and not the pricing.
Connaught Plaza Restaurants, which runs about 150 outlets as McDonald’s franchisee in India’s north and east, issued a statement to media in which it attributed the decision to drop tomatoes to “temporary” seasonal issues.
Westlife Foodworld, the McDonald’s franchisee for India’s western and southern regions with 357 restaurants, denied there were any serious tomato-related issues.
McDonald’s Delhi stores, however, were still offering sachets of tomato ketchup while a nearby Subway restaurant said there were no problems in serving tomatoes.
