McDonald’s Hong Kong says its supply of breakfast hash browns, arguably one of the chain’s most loved offerings, is being affected by US shipping delays.
In a Facebook post on Monday, McDonald’s wrote: “Due to a shortage in the supply of hash browns, customers can now choose either a hash brown or switch to a corn cup at no extra cost for breakfast deals.”
McDonald’s emphasized that customers can still order hash browns, and that the chain is merely offering an alternative free of charge in light of the shortage.
While one Facebook user declared that he “wouldn’t patronize McDonald’s if there were no hash browns,” most praised the company for providing an extra choice.
Read more: Kwun Tong bids farewell to one of Hong Kong’s oldest McDonald’s
On LIHKG, netizens accused McDonald’s of attempting to whitewash its supply chain, believing that the household name, like most fast food restaurants, likely imports their food from mainland China.
While the McDonald’s brand has not been politicized to the extent that companies like local restaurant chain Maxim’s and grocery store Best Mart 360, both seen as pro-establishment, have, some pro-democracy protesters see it as “blue”—or “anti-protest”—due to China being its second-largest market after the US.
In 2019, McDonald’s then-CEO Steve Easterbrook said that US-China trade tensions have not affected the importance of the mainland market to the fast food company.
