McDonald's has long been accused of serving up mystery meat burgers and chicken nuggets made out of pink slime, but the fast food chain has finally decided to set the record straight.
For the first time in its 59-year history the company has allowed cameras behind the scenes inside one of its secret factories.
A camera crew from Good Morning America (GMA) witnessed how McDonald's manages to produce 400,000 pounds of meat per day. They discovered that the chain's famous burger patties are indeed made out of 100% pure beef.
"This is being done to address the questions, the comments and the concerns of our customers," McDonald's chief brand manager Kevin Newell told GMA.
"It's not linked to the business performance at all. It's linked to making sure that our customers truly know the story about McDonald's food."
With 35,000 locations worldwide, McDonald's is the biggest burger chain in the world. Despite this, it seems the company has decided it's time to stop ignoring the long-standing rumours surrounding their food and tackle the claims head-on.
The McDonald's website lists some of the hearsay about their menu and answers unappetising questions such as "do you use so-called 'pink slime' or 'pink goop' in your Chicken McNuggets?".
The website states: "No, our Chicken McNuggets do not contain what some people call 'pink slime' or 'pink goop.'
"We've seen the photo of 'pink goop' or "pink slime" in association with McDonald's. Let's set the record straight: this image in connection with McDonald's is a myth. In fact, we don't know where it came from, but it's not our food. The photo is not a representation of how we create our Chicken McNuggets, or for that matter, any item on our menu.
"Each and every one of our Chicken McNuggets are made with USDA inspected boneless white meat chicken — cut from the chicken breast, tenderloins and rib meat."
The company also addresses suggestions that its food contains the same chemicals used in yoga mats.
"The ingredient in question is azodicarbonamide (ADA) and it is sometimes used by bakers to help keep the texture of their bread consistent from batch to batch. For that reason, it is used in most of the buns and rolls we use for our burgers and sandwiches.
"There are varied uses for azodicarbonamide, including in some non-food products, such as yoga mats. As a result, some people have suggested our food contains rubber or plastic, or that the ingredient is unsafe. It’s simply not the case," it says.
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The recent TV appearance and the website overhaul are both part of McDonald's new campaign to engage directly with the public through honest dialogue.
TV adverts will begin airing nationally next week to let the public know about the push. As part of this new strategy, McDonald's is inviting people to submit questions about its food via social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook.
