McDonald’s sincerely apologizes to Hindus, vegetarians and others for failing to provide the kind of information they needed to make informed dietary decisions at our U.S. restaurants.

We acknowledge that, upon our switch to vegetable oil in the early 1990’s for the purpose of reducing cholesterol, mistakes were made in communicating to the public and customers about the ingredients in our French fries and hash browns. Those mistakes included instances in which French fries and hash browns sold at U.S. restaurants were improperly identified as “vegetarian”.

We regret we did not provide these customers with complete information, and we sincerely apologize for any hardship that these miscommunications have caused among Hindus, vegetarians and others. We should have done a better job in these areas, and we’re committed to doing a better job in the future.

As a direct result of these events, McDonald’s has enhanced its disclosures concerning the source of ingredients in its food products. This information is available at McDonald’s wesite, www.mcdonalds.com, and will be available at each store.

McDonald’s has created a Dietary Practice/Vegetarian Advisory Panel consisting of experts in consumer dietary practices that will advise McDonald’s on relevant ditary restrictions and guidelines, which McDonald’s and others can use for marketing to persons who follow those restrictions. As part of this settlement, McDonald’s is donating $10 million to Hindu, vegetarian and other groups whose charitable and educational activities are closely linked to the concerns of these consumers.