WASHINGTON, D.C., March 8, 2002: Fast food behemoth McDonald’s has agreed to publicly apologize to “Hindus, vegetarians and others” for failing to disclose the use of animal products in foods it identified as vegetarian. The company will also donate $10 million to concerns supported by these groups as part of a settlement in a class-action lawsuit initiated by Seattle-based Indian-American attorney Harish Bharti. Starting next month, pending court approval, the fast food giant will insert advertisements in newspapers apologizing for its mistake. “We acknowledge that, upon our switch to vegetable oil in the early 1990s for the purpose of reducing cholesterol, mistakes were made in communicating to the public and customers about the ingredients in our French fries and hash browns. Those mistakes included instances in which French fries and hash browns sold at US restaurants were improperly identified as vegetarian,” the ads will say. “We regret we did not provide these customers with complete information, and we sincerely apologize for any hardship that these miscommunications have caused among Hindus, vegetarians and others,” the settlement-ad will say. As a result of the flap, and under the terms of the settlement, McDonald’s has also promised to enhance its disclosure standards and create a Dietary Practice/Vegetarian Advisory Panel of experts that will advise the fast food chain on dietary restrictions and guidelines. The lawsuit arose from an episode in April 2001 when some Indian-American vegetarians on the West Coast accused McDonald’s of misleading customers by presenting its golden fries as vegetarian. While McDonald did phase out animal fat in favor of vegetable oil for frying, it was later revealed that the firm continued to use “miniscule” amounts of beef flavoring to “enhance” taste.
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