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For Immediate Release
Contact:

Kate Fried, Food & Water Watch, (202) 683-4905, kfried@fwwatch.org

McDonald's Rejects GMO Potatoes, Other Fast Food Chains Should Follow Suit

"This week McDonald's, one of the largest fast food chains on the planet, told an agriculture news service that it would not use the J.R. Simplot Company's Innate GMO potato. This victory for consumers is another indication that the food industry recognizes that consumers do not want to eat GMO foods. Many parents are already limiting the amount of fast food that their children eat, and GMO french fries would give them another reason to pass by the golden arches. Over the past year, Food & Watch submitted over 90,000 petitions urging McDonald's to reject GMO potatoes.

WASHINGTON

"This week McDonald's, one of the largest fast food chains on the planet, told an agriculture news service that it would not use the J.R. Simplot Company's Innate GMO potato. This victory for consumers is another indication that the food industry recognizes that consumers do not want to eat GMO foods. Many parents are already limiting the amount of fast food that their children eat, and GMO french fries would give them another reason to pass by the golden arches. Over the past year, Food & Watch submitted over 90,000 petitions urging McDonald's to reject GMO potatoes.

"While we cannot speak to the rest of McDonald's practices, this decision marks a milestone in the movement to protect consumers from the potential dangers of GMO foods. McDonald's is a global leader in fast food sales and is a major purchaser of potatoes in the United States.

"Consumers spoke, and McDonald's listened. We now urge competing fast foods chains such as Burger King to follow its lead."

Food & Water Watch mobilizes regular people to build political power to move bold and uncompromised solutions to the most pressing food, water, and climate problems of our time. We work to protect people's health, communities, and democracy from the growing destructive power of the most powerful economic interests.

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