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Moscow Says ‘Nyet!’ to McDonalds; Cites ‘Food Safety’

Moscow Says ‘Nyet!’ to McDonalds; Cites ‘Food Safety’

Los Angeles, CA – Russia has ordered the closure of four McDonalds fast-food restaurants in Moscow because of what the government says are possible “breaches of sanitary rules.”

The four restaurants include the first ever McDonald’s in Russia, which the Oak Brook, Illinois-headquartered global mega-giant says is the busiest in its entire 35,000 outlet global network.

Raising an eyebrow at the move by Russia’s food safety watchdog, many in the business community dismiss Moscow’s assertion saying the move is a another reaction to the sanctions imposed by the US and the European Union over the country’s seizure of the Crimea and its incursion into Ukraine.

“Obviously, it’s driven by the political issues surrounding Ukraine,” said Alexis Rodzianko, president and CEO of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia at a press conference held after the move was made public. “The question on my mind is: Is this going to be a knock on the door, or is this going to be the beginning of a campaign?”

The day after the decision, a sign on the door of the largest McDonalds that was shuttered said the restaurant had been closed “for technical reasons.”

A statement released by the government stated that “documents” had been presented to McDonalds’ management and that the shops had been closed for “numerous sanitary violations dealing with product quality,” without giving any details.

McDonald’s head office released a statement to the press saying that the company “is closely studying the subject of the documents to define what should be done to re-open the restaurants as soon as possible.”

Russia’s first McDonald’s opened on Moscow’s Pushkin Square in 1990.

The company currently operates 438 restaurants in Russia and considers the country, which currently generates about 10 percent of the company’s European operating profit,  as one of its top seven major markets outside the US and Canada.

Other US companies with operations in Russia are closely monitoring the situation, curious as to whether Moscow will expand the regulatory scope of its sudden, intense concern over “product quality” issues.

That list of vulnerables includes such icons as Coca Cola, Starbucks, KFC, Pizza Hut, Jack Daniels, and McDonalds’ arch-rival Burger King.

08/22/2014

Wendy’s: ‘Aye’ to Canada, ‘Nyet’ to Russia

Dublin, OH – Fast food giant Wendy’s has announced a major overhaul of its international operations with almost simultaneous moves to increase its Canadian footprint and reduce its presence in Russia.

On the Canadian front, Wendy’s currently operates 367 restaurants across the country, 230 of which are franchises. By early next year, the company said, the remaining stores that are company owned will also be franchise operations.

According to sources, the company is betting on Canadian franchisors having a better understanding of the Canadian fast food market with the goal of opening at least 100 additional franchises in Canada over the next six years.

Wendy’s is the third-largest burger chain in Canada, behind global mega-giant McDonald’s and A&W. The company has a joint real estate venture with Canadian donut king Tim Hortons called ‘TimWen’, that has Wendy’s leasing 42 facilities across the country for Wendy’s/Tim Hortons combo restaurants.

At the same time it announced its expansion in Canada, Wendy’s said it will close the eight burger restaurants it’s opened in Russia since 2010.

Wendy’s, which had originally planned to open 180 locations in Russia, has cited disagreements with its local partner, Wenrus, for the decision.

The Russian franchiser, the Ohio-based company said, “has not expressed interest in growing Wendy’s business in Russia, nor have they shown the resources to successfully operate the existing restaurants on a long-term basis.”

Currently, Wendy’s operates more than 6,500 Wendy’s restaurants in the US and 27 countries including Singapore, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Costa Rica, the Bahamas, Singapore, Guatemala, Japan, Argentina, Venezuela, the United Arab Emirates, the Dominican Republic, New Zealand, Malaysia, and the Philippines.

08/08/2014