NEW YORK (AP) – Say goodbye to refilling that Coke. McDonald’s is phasing out the juice itself.
The Chicago-based fast-food chain plans to phase out self-serve soup machines in its US restaurants by 2032, it said. McDonald confirmed this week. It’s unclear if locations outside the US will follow suit.
In an email to The Associated Press Tuesday, McDonald’s USA said the goal of the change is to create equality for customers and crew members across the chain’s offerings — from the point of view of personal online and delivery options.
The company did not specify whether there were additional factors – such as money or hygiene – that influenced the decision to part with its service machines. For years, McDonald’s customers have used the machines to fill and refill their drinks without additional trips to the cashier.
There are also soup machines behind the counter at some fast food chains – and a small number of McDonald’s locations around the country have also started the transition. According to the State Journal-Register, which first reported on the plans of the company last week, some places in Illinois, for example, have begun to remove the soda of the person.
In recent years, researchers have also identified changes in consumer behavior since the COVID-19 pandemic – including an increase in digital and online shopping at fast food restaurants. As a result, some chains have played with improving drive-thru or strengthening relationships with food delivery services – from Chipotle growing its Carside pick-up locations to Domino’s penning a new partnership with Uber Eats.
McDonald’s digital purchases – made through the app, delivery and kiosk sales – will account for 40% of digital sales for the second quarter of 2023. Up 14% to $6.5 billion for the period, the chain. reported in Julyand net income nearly doubled to $2.3 billion for the quarter — beating analysts’ expectations.
Some of those gains may fade slightly in the second half of the year. Price increases that have helped fuel McDonald’s sales in recent quarters will moderate as inflation falls, the CEO said. of Finance Ian Borden during July’s Q2 earnings.
