2024.07.11
McDonald’s unveils new Taste of Korea items
By Hwang Joo-young, The
Korea Herald - McDonald's Korea has introduced new items under its "Taste
of Korea" lineup -- including a cheeseburger and a chicken muffin
featuring locally sourced peppers -- highlighting its commitment to
collaborating with rural areas across the country.
In its fourth
edition since 2021, this year’s Taste of Korea lineup focuses on peppers
produced in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province, in the Jinju Pepper Cream Cheese
Burger and Jinju Pepper Cream Cheese Muffin.
“McDonald’s Korea
has continued the Taste of Korea series, with the commitment to collaborating
with rural farmers, contributing to society and the local community, and
promoting the brand both domestically and internationally,” said Yang
Hyoung-keun, public affairs director of McDonald’s Korea, during a press
conference at a Seoul branch on Wednesday.
"I hope this
year's new lineup will successfully appeal to consumers in Korea and gain
enough popularity to be launched in overseas branches," Yang added, noting
that McDonald's Korea is open to launching the domestic items overseas by
communicating with other international branches.
The Jinju Pepper
Cream Cheese Burger features pepper cream cheese and pepper horseradish sauce,
along with two beef patties, bacon, tomato and lettuce. This new product took
one year and three months to develop, involving three processes: product
concept development, consumer feedback-based evaluation and product
development.
Baek Chang-ho, head
of the Korean unit's item development team, highlighted the balanced taste of
the spicy pepper and cream cheese. “Given that spicy flavors are gaining global
popularity recently, we aimed to bring the balanced taste of pepper and cream
cheese to appeal to a broader audience.”
According to
McDonald's Korea, Jinju was chosen for this year’s main concept due to the
city's reputation for producing the largest amount of peppers in the country,
ensuring sustainable procurement. The company secured approximately 5 tons of
Jinju peppers for the initial batch.
Since beginning the
Taste of Korea program in 2021, McDonald’s Korea has sold over 20 million items
featuring locally sourced ingredients, including garlic, green tea-fed pork and
green onion in the previous lineups. The company also sources fresh ingredients
such as tomatoes and lettuce locally, totaling about 16,000 tons annually.
Source: https://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20240710050784