The shortage of imported products in Venezuela is reaching worrying levels and it is not an exaggeration, since McDonald’s has recently left its Venezuelan customers without french fried potatoes, the side to its hamburgers.
The fast-food giant admitted that it is facing a shortage problem with potatoes, attributed to a strike by workers on the West Coast of the United States. Working on solving the problem, the fast-food chain said that in the meantime it is changing its menu to replace potato french fries with french fried yuca (yuca frita), arepa and salad.
“We continue to offer our customers the McDonald’s experience with 100% Venezuelan options,” the company said in a statement.
Venezuela has the most expensive “Happy Meal” (Cajita Feliz) in the world (US$27 dollars at the official exchange rate) or the cheapest one (US$0.90 cents at the exchange rate on the black market).
On the other hand, the protests and looting of stores continue.
McDonald’s in Venezuela is operated by Arcos Dorados (NYSE:ARCO), a McDonald’s franchisee that operates or franchises over 2,140 McDonald’s-branded restaurants. It divides its operations into four geographical divisions: Brazil; the Caribbean division, consisting of Aruba, Colombia, Curacao, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, the United States Virgin Islands of Saint Croix and Saint Thomas, and Venezuela; the North Latin America division (NOLAD), consisting of Costa Rica, Mexico and Panama, and the South Latin America division (SLAD), consisting of Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay.
