Our planet

Our packaging, toys and waste strategies are designed to help keep communities clean, help protect the planet for future generations and support the Company’s long term business resilience.

To achieve this, we’re evolving our packaging, redesigning some of our most iconic products to eliminate unnecessary packaging, identifying alternative materials and increasing opportunities for recovery.

Our Recent Progress

  • By the end of 2023, we were approximately 86.7% of the way toward our goal of sourcing 100% of our primary guest packaging from renewable, recycled or certified materials.

  • From 2018–2023, we reduced virgin fossil fuel-based plastic in Happy Meal toys by 63.7%

  • In 2023, more than 88.3% of restaurants in markets with advanced infrastructure offered guests the opportunity to recycle and/or compost packaging items.

Our Strategy

We’re committed to taking steps to help reduce waste and advance a circular economy. For example, we’re investing in strategies and working collaboratively with other stakeholders to help address systemic challenges related to recycling infrastructure, demand for recycled materials and development of new packaging and toy materials. We continue to evaluate and consider the role reusables can play in our restaurants around the world, alongside other circularity solutions and in compliance with applicable laws regarding reusable packaging.

By the end of 2025, we are aiming to meet four goals that advance our strategy. There is more on our progress and actions in our latest Purpose & Impact Report (PDF – 6 MB).

Focus on Materials

We have a goal to source 100% of our primary guest packaging from renewable, recycled or certified materials by the end of 2025.

We’re working with suppliers to optimize our packaging for recycling, where feasible, helping them innovate in support of this goal and creating opportunities for behavior change to help advance the reduction, reuse or recycling of guest packaging.

Focus on Waste

We believe the greatest opportunity to address guest packaging-related waste is to advance safe, proven solutions including reduction and recycling where existing infrastructure and innovation can be effectively scaled across industries and communities.

In markets with an advanced waste infrastructure that is widely accessible and robust, we offer guests the opportunity to sort packaging for recycling in restaurants. In areas where recycling infrastructure is underdeveloped and less robust, we aim to help advance the development of recycling systems through advocacy and related strategies.

We also aim to eliminate any unnecessary packaging where we can. For example, we try to help reduce guest packaging-related waste volumes associated with items such as straws, napkins and cutlery by only providing such items upon request in certain locations.

Increasing Demand for Recycled Materials

One of our goals is to source 100% of our primary guest packaging from renewable, recycled or certified materials by the end of 2025. Because food-grade recycled material is in limited supply, we are focusing on sourcing recycled materials for paper bags, napkins and cup carriers first. Depending on location, recycled materials are also currently used in some hot beverage cups, cup sleeves, cartons, fry boxes, plastic beverage and dessert cups, as well as select plastic lids.

We are collaborating with industry organizations and other brands to help leverage scale and create demand for food-safe, post-consumer recycled materials.

We aim to expand our use of recycled materials, consistent with our goal of implementing global and local solutions across our business to help create demand for recycled materials by the end of 2025. This includes packaging, toys and design materials for restaurants and facilities.