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Ronald McDonald Has A New Image ; Parents Still Not ‘Lovin It’

By Dawn Papple
Published on: 02:48 PST, Apr 25, 2014

According to a McDonald’s press release, Ronald McDonald has changed his image. The company hopes to entice kids back to lovin’ it and its Happy Meal by modernizing Ronald’s look. The fast-food giant says that Ronald will be wearing “yellow cargo pants and a vest, accompanied by a red-and-white striped rugby shirt.” His big red clown shoes will stay the same. On special occasions, Ronald will wear a “whimsical new red blazer” and “a special bow tie,” because that’s modern and hip… apparently. Ronald McDonald will also be joining Twitter, though barely. According to the WSJ, Ronald McDonald will not “get his own Twitter handle” but the fast-food company “will post comments attributed to him using the hashtag #RonaldMcDonald” in a move that is sure to blow up in the company’s face.

Actually, the #RonaldMcDonald Twitter fail has already started:

The Golden Arches hopes the clown’s new image will be able to bring back the younger eaters, the major key demographic for the fast-food industry. McDonald’s reported sales at U.S. stores that had been open at least one year were down 1.7 percent in the last quarter. McDonald’s rivals have been luring parents with significant menu additions and changes. Lynn Collier is an analyst at Sterne Agee, according to CNN. Collier said, “Its competitors have gotten better, but McDonald’s has stayed the same.”

The food industry is catching on to what has been steering parents’ food choices, and it’s not how well dressed a mascot is. Parents know they can’t provide their children with the perfect diet, but even parents on-the-go are trying to make “better choices.” McDonald’s food is starting to be considered more of a treat than a dietary staple. One thing driving parents’ new food-awareness is food allergies. Food allergies now affects one in every 13 children, according to the Food Allergy Research & Education. Ronald McDonald could take note that only eight foods account for 90 percent of all allergic reactions in children: milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, soy, wheat, fish and shellfish. Even trace amounts of these allergens can cause a severe reaction parents are unwilling to deal with. According to the CDC, food allergies in children have gone up 50 percent between 1997 and 2011, and the rates continue to rise.

Ronald McDonald could have learned from General Mills before he tried on his new cargo pants. Cheerios, a parent’s favorite for decades, are now GMO-free. General Mills eliminated them from the kid’s cereal after their social media marketing campaign’s “What Cheerios Mean To Me” app backfired with anti-GMO sentiment, causing General Mills to pull the app. According to a recent New York Times poll, 93 percent of Americans want GMOs in food to be labeled. Someone could have told Ronald that parents want GMOs labelled because they want to stop feeding them to their kids. Stephen Hughes, chairman and chief executive of Boulder Brands, said of consumers wanting genetically modified foods gone, “I’ve been in the food industry for 35 years. I have never seen a consumer issue come on this fast.” LA Times reported, consumers demanded GMO-free foods, so the food industry innovator gave it to them. Hughes didn’t mention if customers also demanded that all mascots wear sleek, hip, blazers to formal events.

According to Entrepreneur, in February, fast-food chain Chick-fil-A announced it will be going completely antibiotic free within five years, because parents are tired of inadvertently feeding kids antibiotics via their chicken tenders and McNuggets. In December, Chick-fil-A even announced it had removed yellow dye from its chicken soup and committed to work hard to remove high fructose corn syrup and artificial ingredients from products, because parents demanded it. Earlier in 2014, McDonald’s did announce that it would purchase “verified sustainable” beef by 2016. It’s a start, but the chain is going to have to do more than offer “sustainable beef” and change Ronald McDonald’s outfit if they are going to woo parents back on a regular basis. Perhaps when Ronald is waiting for his tailor to fix the hem on his pants, he should google-search “McDonald’s is” on his handheld device to find out what really needs altering.

#RonaldMcDonald, will there be any actual food changes up that hip, new blazer sleeve?

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