McDonald's New Worldwide Corporate Responsibility Report Now Available

Published 09-13-06

Submitted by McDonald's Corporation

OAK BROOK, IL - McDonald's continues to open its doors with the release of its third Corporate Responsibility Report. Entitled "Open Doors," the report is a transparent look at the company's social responsibility progress.

The report focuses on the progress the company is making in three areas of the company's Plan to Win strategy - Products, People and Place. It details the company's commitment to and progress on such important subjects as environment, people practices, animal welfare, sustainability, philanthropy, employment and diversity.

Chief Executive Officer Jim Skinner said, "We've always tried to be transparent about our business, but we realize we need to do a better job of letting people know about the real McDonald's. We're proud of the actions we've taken, and we think our customers will be surprised by what they learn. As pleased as we are with our progress, we remain committed to listening, learning and doing more."

You can access McDonald's Corporate Social Responsibility report, blog postings and podcasts online at www.csr.mcdonalds.com.

A new element to the report includes candid opinions of MBA students from the Haas School of Business at University of California at Berkeley who were given open access to McDonald's and its supplier facilities to examine the sustainability of the company's U.S. beef supply. Students observed up close all the stages of beef production from "fork to farm" and provided their insights and recommendations.

"McDonald's opened their doors to me and my Berkeley MBAs. During this process, we were able to learn mutually from one another. The students were able to contribute their findings and recommendations to a critically-positioned multi-national management team. We are extremely grateful for this partnership with McDonald's and anticipate that it will continue in the years to come," said Professor Kellie A. McElhaney, Adjunct Assistant Professor, John C. Whitehead Distinguished Faculty Fellow Director, Center for Responsible Business, Haas School of Business, University of California at Berkeley.

Other highlights of the report include:

People:

42% of the top 50 worldwide management team members started as restaurant crew, as did 64% of company-operated restaurant managers.

People strategies are working - 83% of crew members in five of the nine major markets said they would recommend working at McDonald's

Products:

McDonald's restaurants served 433 million pounds of vegetables and 181 million pounds of fruit around the world in 2005

McDonald's worked with Greenpeace and other nongovernmental organizations, as well as suppliers, to address the impacts of soya farming on Amazon deforestation

Ensured compliance of meat processing plants with our animal welfare standards - 99% passed audits

Since 2001, shifted purchases of more than 18,000 tons of whitefish to fisheries that meet our sustainability criteria

Place:

31.5% of our packaging material comes from recycled paper

Received 2005 EPA Climate Protection Award for joint efforts to promote natural refrigerants for equipment which reduces greenhouse gas emissions

"'Open Doors' is more than a report, it is another example of our commitment to remain open to continuous improvement, open to constructive criticism and ideas, and open to dialogue. Our customers tell us they care about what McDonald's is doing and they want to know more. We anticipate that this report will provide them with more information and fresh perspectives," said Bob Langert, McDonald's Vice President of Corporate Citizenship.

As part of the company's ongoing dialogue with the public on important societal issues, Bob Langert held the first of a series of live webchats on corporate social responsibility last week to enable people to share their views and get their questions about the company's efforts answered.

"Besides the new webchats we are starting to do, we are also providing customers with the ability to post their thoughts and perspectives on our new corporate social responsibility blog. In it, we regularly share our reflections and dialogue on a full range of topics from animal welfare to environmental sustainability," said Langert.

McDonald's acknowledges the contributions of Ceres. The company leveraged critical input from the Ceres Stakeholder Engagement process to frame the corporate social responsibility report and to help identify and address three significant issues.

In addition, for the second year in a row, McDonald's has been selected for inclusion in the Dow Jones World and Dow Jones North America Sustainability Indexes. These indexes recognize companies that are industry leaders on a broad range of economic, environmental, and social issues. McDonald's is one of the very few food service retailers to be honored.

The DJSI Indexes are among the world's most prestigious stock indexes for socially responsible investors. Inclusion reflects an expert judgment that a company is creating long-term shareholder value by strategically managing social responsibility-related opportunities and risks.

McDonald's is the leading foodservice retailer with more than 30,000 local neighborhood restaurants in more than 100 countries. Approximately 70 percent of McDonald's restaurants worldwide are owned and operated by independent, local men and women.

McDonald's Corporation

McDonald’s is the world’s leading global foodservice retailer with nearly 40,000 locations in over 100 countries. Approximately 95% of McDonald’s restaurants worldwide are owned and operated by independent local business owners.

McDonald's New Worldwide Corporate Responsibility Report Now Available

McDonald's New Worldwide Corporate Responsibility Report Now Available

McDonald's Corporation

McDonald's Corporation

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