Sales for burger-chain giant McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) have increased dramatically thanks to fresh meat. The food giant switched from frozen beef patties to fresh ones, resulting in a 30% spike in quarter pounder sales in the last year.

The company announced the news earlier today, but despite the increase, MCD shares are down at present, selling for $203.90 USD on the NYSE.

McDonald’s Gains Market Share

Last year, the burger chain made the switch from frozen to fresh across most of its US stores. As stated, the result was a 30% spike in quarter-pounder sales over the past 12 months. That increase helped McDonald’s gain market share in the “informal eating out” category for the first time in five years.

Changing Times

The switch was made to appease the growing numbers that want to know where their food comes from. It was also made in response to a greater demand for “real” food and not processed variants.

The company’s chief supply chain officer for North America, Marion Gross, told CNN that McDonald’s “customers are changing at a super fast pace [and] as a result, we’ve had to change, too.”

Other changes made include using cage-free eggs and reducing the use of antibiotics in its beef.

The sales spike is also attributed to a strong marketing campaign surrounding the chain’s fresh beef, which first launched in May 2018. Marketing efforts were strong, leading the company to introduce the fresh beef burger in its 2 for $5 deal more recently.

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Though seamless for the customers, behind the scenes, changing to fresh from frozen was a challenge for the company. Gross continued that “there was a huge transformation that was required.” In order to supply meat fresh, producers and distributors required more refrigerators and better packaging equipment to ensure the meat was handled safely. The entire supply chain was effected from distribution trucks down to the staff in stores that had to implement new food safety standards.

Do you think MCD shares will reflect this sales surge?

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