McDonald's apologizes for tooth, plastic found in food

Pack your bags, McDonald’s. Japan doesn't need you and, slowly but surely, is waking up to the fact that it doesn't want you...

Amazingly, despite this news Japan Corp's share price was up slightly overseas today/yesterday, and is only slightly lower than where it was one year ago. I expected the share price to take a major dive after word of these incidents got out.

Sadly large chains like these often face problems similar to this and are sometimes targets for people looking for a handout. I do not believe that is the case here, but the tooth one seems fishy, if it was in the fries it would have been pretty burnt and not as white as it was shown on TV. The plastic is a problem with their suppliers and needs to be dealt with in a timely manner.

Plastic. Tooth. "Sorry about that...." Well, no. I'll have it my way, thank you.

This kind of happenings will never end. Human errors cannot be avoided. Car makers apologize very often. McDonald is just unlucky. Bad things are concentrating on them. What about others?

McD should be apologizing for the food like substances they put on their menu, the way they externalize health, environmental and labour costs and the urban blight of their tedious restaurants.

They provide a lot of jobs, and judging by the "obesity" of the Japanese population, their health impact is also non existent. Like a previous poster said "human errors can't be avoided", so give them a break already. Stop thinking about the evil empire, but think instead about the Ken en junko who feed their families by working at McDonalds.

Sounds like some kids were using the tooth for a game of table football and shot a field goal.

Successful companies go through rough patches and it happens to all companies. Pain is inevitable but will slowly fade and suffering only optional. All companies make mistakes but it doesn't mean that they cannot be trusted even afterward. They learn from failure, not success and move on. The pass does not equal the present.

Everyone loves McNuggets

So 4 foreign items found in McDonald's food over 2 years according to the article. Im sure there were more that people either didnt report, or it didnt go as far as the news.

But if you consider the amount of food they produce each day, heck even each hour, that is an insanely small percentage of issues with the food.

Just think about the stuff that WASN'T found!

Ronald's Demise, one problem after another, perhaps its time they concentrated on quality control instead of having one restaurant outside every train station in Japan.

Stopped eating this garbage awhile ago like lots of other people, it's not missed and there are far better choices available.

I watched the news last night i saw the tooth and kinda strange with red blood, also the insect with one yen on the side, the ice cream sundae cup was eat well and nothing left except the plastic as they said. Totally doubtful cant blame Mc do.

So... McDonald's still insist on calling their products "food"?

The smell of opportunity is in the air, at least if your a consumer. I wonder what kind of deals Mac will have to offer us that we can take advantage. hmmm sales, sales, sales. I support the growth and pains of any company that helps the economy by creating jobs, low paying but nonetheless a job.

Ronald's Demise

You mean Donald, right?

With all these stories lately, it feels like someone has it out for McDs.

@Nik

So 4 foreign items found in McDonald's food over 2 years according to the article. Im sure there were more that people either didnt report, or it didnt go as far as the news. But if you consider the amount of food they produce each day, heck even each hour, that is an insanely small percentage of issues with the food.

They said there were other incidents. They don't publicize every little incident - the media are just zoning in on them now. But yes, I can tell you for a fact that I have never had problems with a foreign object at McDonalds despite numerous times eating there, but at other restaurants sometimes I'll find a hair or something in my food on my very first time. Big companies are going to make big news. It doesn't mean they are any more dirty than the rest.

@Geoff Gillespie

Pack your bags, McDonald’s. Japan doesn't need you and, slowly but surely, is waking up to the fact that it doesn't want you...

Perhaps Japan doesn't "need" McDonald's, but what tells you it is waking up to that? Greasy fast food is now a part of Japan - just look at any convenience store and you'll find worse.

I love how people use fast food to get on their high-horse about how great they are because they "don't eat that garbage" etc....pathetic.

Never liked McDonald's that much and particular in Japan, they are really hurting and they are just selling horrible products, in the states McD's has gotten a lot better in many areas, but I am just saying there is a HUGE room for improvement and drastically needed improvement, but for the life of me, I don't know why Japan McD's doesn't try harder and bring in better burger shops like Wendy's or Burger King that would crush McD's and force them to seriously change their way of doing business, but they think their business practices are just A-OK. They just never learn.

think instead about the Ken en junko who feed their families by working at McDonalds

I shudder at how malnourished they must be.

Wendy's always had their restaurants in weird isolated spots, at least here in Kansai. No wonder they failed. Burger King is back but seem to pretty empty whenever I go there. Lack of advertising?

There are over 3000 McDonald's outlets in Japan.

How about taking a random selection of 3000 low cost restaurants/izakayas for comparison? Almost certainly, they would have even more cases of contaminants in food - especially the small chains that have less oversight with their suppliers. But you will never hear about it, because bad food in small restaurants doesn't make the news.

Because of its size, Mcdonald's is a convenient target. If they left Japan tomorrow, there would be plenty of other places in Japan to fill up on unhealthy junk food, plastic bits, hair and whatever.

“I will eat McNuggets. I will feed McNuggets to my children. I have no doubts,” said Aoki.

McNuggets are a chemical cocktail that should not be eaten by dogs, better less children! There is very little chicken in them at all. They are mostly corn in different forms with a dozen or so chemicals added for flavor and preserving. There is one chemical in them derived from petroleum that has been linked to colon cancer. Anybody that feeds McDonalds to their kids shoul be charged with child abuse!

Moderator: Please repost without the last sentence.

Is it just me or do Big Macs seems to be shrinking lately? It no longer deserves the title.

McDonald's didn't get to be the biggest franchise in the world for no reason. They will weather this and move on.

Wendy's always had their restaurants in weird isolated spots, at least here in Kansai. No wonder they failed.

Wendy's didn't fail. Their parent company didn't renew their license when it expired, because they wanted to focus on their other restaurants. Wendy's was profitable though.

"He said it was possible that outsiders had planted the tooth and other items." Nope, disgrunteled employee.

McProfit

I'm missing some "tooth plastic". I'll send Makku my address and they can post it to me....

oh god, I hope nobody fell in the grinder...

McDonald's food is nothing if not toothsome.

johnnygaijin: maybe you're getting bigger? jk

My guilty pleasure is McD's french fries; I'll probably end up with bowl cancer soon enough.

commanteer,

How about taking a random selection of 3000 low cost restaurants/izakayas for comparison? Almost certainly, they would have even more cases of contaminants in food

You know, I don't think so.

The "food" at fast food establishments is all automated. They drop the carcasses in at one end and burgers come out the other. No human actually cooks it, not in the real sense of the word. The "food processing operatives" unwrap it, reheat it and rewrap it for delivery to the victims - sorry! - customers. Nobody really gets a close look at it.

The "master" or "mama-san" in an izakaya, on the other hand, actually cooks the food. Well, most of them do. And they therefore have a chance to see what's in it. Also, since their customers are sitting right in front of them, if they see something grotesque poking out of something they are about to drop into the frying pan, they are more likely to hoik it out.

The main reason I never eat fast food is just this. You don't know what's gone into it.

Haven't gone to Mcdonalds in over 8 years.

On the bright side, my kids were actually watching the news last night, and then announced they don't want to go to McDonalds anymore. So at least this works out well for me.

Should be rebranded as "Mc Gunk"

Potato fries were my fovourites. RIP McDnls potato fries.

two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, blue vinyl, cheese, pickles, a bug, onions, a human tooth, on a sesame seed bun...

the new advertising jingle is a little harder to remember

You deserve a broken tooth today, at McDonalds!

The "master" or "mama-san" in an izakaya, on the other hand, actually cooks the food. Well, most of them do. And they therefore have a chance to see what's in it. Also, since their customers are sitting right in front of them, if they see something grotesque poking out of something they are about to drop into the frying pan, they are more likely to hoik it out.

You obviously have never been to a chain izakaya anywhere and are ignorant about how they cook their food and where it comes from.

The "food" at fast food establishments is all automated. They drop the carcasses in at one end and burgers come out the other.

Bertie, all cheap restaurant chains and most cheap restaurants all source food from the same places as McDonald's. Many medium priced restaurants use the same sources as well, and just dress it up better. It's no less "automated," as you call it.

I'm not talking about a mom and pop izakaya, as they do take more care (though a great many of those also use cheap and questionable sources for food).

More care is usually taken by the suppliers when the sell to McDonald's, because McDonald's is big and can make demands - and they worry about their image. Those same suppliers also sell to importers in Japan, who sell to wholesalers, who sell to local izakayas and chains. The same food. Except the importers have fewer resources to stay on top of the suppliers than Mcdonald's.

Unless you are buying locally sourced food from a place you trust, you're kidding yourself if you think you are getting something better than McDonald's at a local cheapo chain. You think Saizeriya is better? It's not.

Crap processed food is killing us. Buy some fish and vegetables and cook them up at home.

Deeply disturbing, Takehiko Aoki should be launching himself onto his sword, Mac Dentures and Fries? What next the zero calorie take away that consumes itself....

Apologies and Japanese style deep bows by store officials are no convincing answers to the blatant blunders by the international fast-food chain McDonald’s Corp - repetitive in nature as the report itself clearly suggests! Putting blame on or pointing fingers at others for crystal clear quality control shortcomings on the part of the international giant will not help problems of this nature resolve in a go. There ought to be drastic QC measures by the retailer as blunders of this nature could easily end up in fatalities or irreparable injuries to the victims. As some others have suggested, the international chain may soon be forced out of sight in Asia if such repetitive incidents are not properly dealt with lest the love-hate relationship claimed by the management will in no time turn to be a permanent state of ''I HATE McDONALD'S'' ATTITUDE ON THE PART OF CUSTOMERS IN THE ENTIRE REGION!

Never liked McDonald's that much and particular in Japan, they are really hurting

Hurting? I have never seen an empty McDonald's here and have you ever driven past one around noon?

Good grief, out of the BILLIONS of hamburgers and other food McD's has served over the years, we have one tooth and three pieces of plastic found in the food. Cripes, I have found hair in my food in several other restaurants over the years, it happens it's no big deal, I just take the hair out.

"I have never seen an empty McDonald's here and have you ever driven past one around noon?"

Never driven past one but I've walked by and even into a lot of them over the years. But I haven't walked into any recently.

Welcome to our world Japan. A world filled with bad, unhealthy, lab-conceived food.

McDonalds Japan had something like 14 years straight of profits. 2014 was anticipated to run at a loss. Hardly hurting overall. A few years in the red and they will be hurting, but one year is nothing.

The tooth is out there.

The "master" or "mama-san" in an izakaya, on the other hand, actually cooks the food. Well, most of them do. And they therefore have a chance to see what's in it. Also, since their customers are sitting right in front of them, if they see something grotesque poking out of something they are about to drop into the frying pan, they are more likely to hoik it out.

The "mamma" at a Mom and Pop izakaya I used to have lunch at didn't seem to notice when there was a slug-like thing wriggling around in my colleague's salad. He had to point that out himself, but everything was forgotten without any really apologies.

In the whole scheme of things (number of people served vs incidents), McDonalds food and it's industry is much safer and more regulated or rather scrutinized, rather than trying to cover-up these incidences like some other companies have done.

Is it just me or do Big Macs seems to be shrinking lately? It no longer deserves the title.

Everything seems to be shrinking.. Now with the butter shortage they try to trick you into buying a 150 gram stick (and my wife fell for it). At least McDonalds is pretty consistent with the patty size from restaurant to restaurant. I swear Lotteria burgers differ in bulkiness depending on where you buy it..

Stop making excuses for gross misconduct. It is totally unacceptable to serve customers teeth which are the hardest substances in the human body.