User:Jojo120419/Fast food in China

McDonald’s leadership policies
McDonald’s promotion of local national leadership allowed for an easier introduction into the Chinese market. China is known to have fierce competition among global companies for leadership talent as a result McDonald’s looks to distinguish themselves by promoting local talent to top positions. 42% of top leadership in McDonald’s started out as a crew member. (3)

Big Mac in China
McDonald’s in the 1990’s represented the Americana image as well as the promise of modernization. McDonald’s strict control over food quality ensured consumers of their cleanliness. Customers also enjoy standardized prices as it brings about an atmosphere of equality, where every customer can get the same level of service and food for the same price. McDonald’s meals which usually consist of a burger and fries are interpreted as a snack as traditional Chinese meals consist of rice and a vegetable or meat dish. McDonald’s and other foreign fast foods were seen as a treat, especially towards lower income families. As a result families may save several days of pay to be able to afford to eat at the restaurant. This adds to the perception that McDonald’s is not a regular place for meals, rather a cultural experience.

Scandals
A McDonald’s in Guangzhou, in the Guangdong province underwent widespread criticism for excluding people of African descent from entering their restaurant. This was in response to the introduction of the novel coronavirus with Chinese officials warning about the rise of imported coronavirus cases from Africa. Guangzhou is known to host one of the largest African communities in China. (4*)

Environmental Actions
Beijing Simplot Food Processing, the primary supplier of frozen French fries and potato products to McDonald’s in China has been fined a total of 3.9 million yuan ($629,000) for having been caught releasing polluted water into the city’s primary water pipes. McDonald’s responded by saying they will closely monitor their suppliers and have stated that all suppliers “must comply with all relevant local laws and regulations”. (6*) This puts into question how long this practice has been occurring and the sort of environmental as well as health impacts it may have on civilians.

McDonald’s have undergone a significant shift in their packaging to support green initiatives in reducing waste and allowing for more “green” packaging. McDonald’s is also expected to open 1,800 green restaurants between the years of 2018-2022. McDonald’s follows the LEED volume certification set by the U.S. (7*) This packaging will be used to reach three goals revolving around responsible packaging, a continuous reduction, and optimization over the materials used.

Straws have also been phasing out of China and even started to introduce straw less lids at select Beijing restaurants. This is an extra initiative to the “green” packaging mission that McDonald’s have been trying to pursue. (8*)

Children as a target audience
McDonald’s also has shown to appeal strongly to children to the extent that there would be areas in McDonald’s called “children’s paradise” consisting of children running around and playing. (1) Parents in Hong Kong have been known to use a trip to McDonald’s as a reward for good behavior or academic achievement. As a result McDonald’s has cemented themselves as a significant portion of someone's childhood. (2)

Environmental Actions
Much like other fast food businesses, Kentucky Fried Chicken will look to phase out their usage of plastic products and will instead introduce wooden cutlery and more biodegradable packaging material for their orders. Nonbiodegradable plastic bags will also be removed and instead replaced with biodegradable paper bags that will be used in their delivery and takeout bags. This is all in guidance with other fast food restaurants seeking to follow a plastic reduction plan set by Beijing in 2019. (15)

Establishments in Shanghai
Burger King, also known as 汉堡王(Hànbǎowáng) opened their first chain in Shanghai on June 27, 2005. The Chinese counterpart offered the standard Burger King menu with the Whopper, as well as special offerings to appeal to Chinese tastes such as the Spicy Mala Burger. (1) Burger King in China as of 2012 is backed by TAB Food Investments also known as TFI. TFI currently runs over 1,200 Burger King’s in China being the largest franchisee owner globally. (2)

Scandals
Burger King restaurants in the Eastern Jiangxi Province have been accused of having served expired burgers and chicken nuggets by replacing expiration labels, under the instruction of restaurant managers. Burger King China has issued an apology and has promised to investigate this matter at hand. (3)

Burger King's success in China
Burger King found

Starbucks in Beijing
Starbucks, a chain primarily known for their coffee, drinks, and quick service food opened their first store in the China World Trade Building, Beijing in January 1999. As of 2021, Starbucks has opened 5,000 stores in 200 different cities around all of mainland China. (10)

Environmental Actions
Starbucks follows the ‘GOOD GOOD’ movement that revolves around the transition from plastic straws and unrecyclable materials to more sustainable packaging options like their biodegradable straw that is primarily built using coffee grounds and poly lactic acid. Wooden cutlery will also replace all plastic cutlery as well as offering other reusable server ware for use in-store. Starbucks as a company has set science-based preliminary targets for 50 percent reductions of carbon, water and waste globally by the year of 2030. (11)

Closures
Starbucks currently has over 4,300 outlets in China and the coronavirus pandemic caused over 2,000 Starbucks locations in China to close either temporarily or permanently during this crisis. (12)

Competition
China is the largest growing market outside of the U.S. and has been growing at an immense rate since its inception back in 1999. Rise of domestic competition has led to concerns over future profitability within this market. Foreign brands such as illycaffe and Tim Hortons have also been attempting to interfere with their control over the control that Starbucks have been able to establish. As of 2021, Tea drink markets were double the size of that of the coffee market within China. It is reported there are over four times the amount of milk tea and fruit juice stores compared to coffee shops. (13)

2000s
By the end of the 2000’s China has seen an immense growth in obesity rates with 27.8% of children surpassing the standard weight guidelines. Obesity rates of male students in Beijing reached 15%, near doubling their original figures in 1990. These rates have matched the introduction of fast food establishments and have created significant concern for the future health of its citizens. (4)

Social Media
McDonald’s in China in recent decades have established themselves deeply into the lives of many Chinese citizens. As of 2013 KFC and other fast food brands like McDonald’s have been under fire for their high usage of antibiotics in their food as they link this to their significant weight gain in their population. (5)

Scandals
Many Fast food restaurants were impacted by a scandal involving rotten meat from a Shanghai based factory that have been known to supply food retailers in China such as McDonald’s, KFC, Papa John’s, and Burger King. McDonald’s during this time assured food safety, however weeks later admitted to having imported chicken and pork through the Shanghai distributor. (5*)

Health Initiatives
Yum China, the parent brand of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell have looked into initiatives to separate themselves from their American counterparts by focusing on improving the health of consumers. Yum China will work with state-sponsored health campaigns to raise awareness and build healthy eating habits for their citizens.

Drive Thru
The drive-through was a relatively new concept in its establishment in China in the early 2000’s. It was so new that many individuals did not know how to use it. As of 2008 there were only 26 drive thru’s in china and is something that has gained more awareness overtime, but has not increased as much in popularity and availability.. (7)

Growth of Fast Food industries over time
Fast food industries have grown immensely and have significant ties to the rapid economic development that took place in the 1990’s to the early 2000’s. As of 2013 there are over 2 million fast food restaurants open in China. These range from franchises to independent Chinese style fast food places. (7)

A majority of fast food restaurants opened in China are privately owned (76% as of 2012). Domestic Chinese fast food chains like Malan Noodle compete with large American franchises like KFC and have shown to still have a hold over 43% of the total fast food industry revenue in 2013. (7)

Environmental Concerns
With the rise of food delivery offered by many restaurants in China, this produces immense amounts of waste as every delivery item comes with disposable containers and single-use chopsticks. This has led to lawsuits over the environmental cost of the food delivery’s wastefulness. With this rise of cities and increase of food delivery orders, the ecological impacts could be extremely severe over a course of time. Food delivery in China mostly consists of the use of plastics that are not easily accessible compared to the U.S. where most delivery orders come in biodegradable material like paper or cardboard. (9)