MNer with a child aged 5-11? Want to come to the launch of the new McDonald’s Happy Meal?!

[EmmaMumsnet]

NOW CLOSED

We’ve been working with McDonald’s over the last year to help develop their Happy Meal menu. This included a survey, where over 1,000 Mumsnetters gave their opinion on what they’d like to see on the McDonald’s Happy Meal menu, and a focus group with Mumsnetters and gransnetters, where they could try new menu options and share their thoughts. Following this research McDonald’s are now launching their new Happy Meal! If you’d like to come along to the family fun day at St Paul’s, London on Saturday 30th June to try out the new menu sign up below.

Here’s what McDonald’s has to say: “We are constantly looking for ways to enhance our menu, from introducing new items to evolving the recipes of our iconic favourites. We’ve taken big steps to improve our Happy Meal in recent years and reducing saturated fat, salt and sugar content across our menu remains a priority. This is why we have been working with Mumsnet to provide even greater choice for parents and their families. We’ve heard from Mumsnetters about what they’d love to see added to the Happy Meal menu and we’re excited to be launching it later this month at this exclusive event. We’d love for you and your child to come along and try it out!”

The family fun day to launch the new Happy Meal menu will be taking place at St Paul’s, London from 1pm-3pm on Saturday 30th June. As well as lunch for the whole family there will also be music, games and face painting to take part in! All attendees will need to have a child aged 5-11 but they can bring others along to the event. After the event we’d like you to leave your feedback on the event and the new Happy Meal on a thread on Mumsnet. For coming along and leaving feedback all attendees will be given a £30 cheque and McDonald’s will reimburse travel costs of up to £50.

N.B. There will be filming and photography at the event so please only sign up if you’re happy with this.

If you are interested in taking part, please sign up here.

Thanks

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs Apply

I let my children eat McDonalds. Eldest is 22, size 8, runs for an hour everyday rain or shine and goes to the gym three times a week.

I’m a believer in everything in moderation. Why?

Because NOTHING in this world is 100% good for us.

My parents used to ban me and my brothers eating junk food- so when I got my first taste of it, I wanted more. And more. I didn’t want my parents to know- so guess what? I would hide sweet wrappers under my mattress. I would spend that £1 for the bus on a burger because I knew it would be the only opportunity that I had because it was school holidays soon and my parents took me everywhere.

Just something for the “junk food is the devil” lovers to consider.

Unbelievable that Mumsnet supports McDonalds

There were five girls in my dd's primary school class and all were at a healthy BMI. Three loved Mc Donalds and were taken there for birthdays and special occasions and two were not allowed McDonalds, including my dd. We moved away and years later found that the three who loved McDonalds had become seriously obese, while the two who never went to McDonalds were still a normal size.

I can't believe MN now accept money from McDonald's.
Forget the healthiness/unhealthiness... what about ethics?
Why the change of policy?

My kids do a lot of sport, at the low end of a normal bmi and eat a range that the odd McDonald’s is part of. They when my eldest has multiple food allergies were amazing for eating out. We’d go into place after place that had no info and staff just stared at us but McDonald’s was somewhere safe and ubiquitous, a clear menu and easy to manage options. They also have more and more healthy options and you can easily customise stuff.

I honestly think my children are far healthier than average, and they get moderation. I don’t think you can just demonise certain places or foods and expect your children to get moderation. The two oldest are adults not and have maintained realistic exercise and eating habits for healthy adult life.

I mucked up the other day. I did a party for eight year olds and free access food, sandwiches, treats and fruit.

Most kids did as I expected, took a sandwich, fruit bit and a small treat or two. A handful with free reign plated up multiple bags of haribo, party rings, chewy and piled them up to eat. I nearly died when I realised I should have controlled it heavily and they ran outside with plates of sugar to parents. Especially when most were clean eaters

I’m with the everything in moderation train of thought!

MNHQ when will we find out if selected?

I'd feel tight taking my kids to McD's and giving them carrot sticks with a happy meal instead of chips.
In France Happy meals include a bag of fruit for free so you can have chips as well

I'm really struggling with the thought that a small bag of chips, that's potato fried in very hot vegetable oil, with or without salt, are the devil incarnate when consumed as part of a balanced diet. I also wonder why should people be denied choice just because some other people can't control themselves? That's when it comes back to education. Children need carbs and fats. Some children are given too many. It's like saying that diabetics or celiac can't have certain food so we shouldn't sell it.

I think giving fruit and chips is an excellent idea.

Also loving all the anecdotal small sample evidence for both sides quoted on here. I have two DC, same sex, almost same age, almost same height. One can eat anything and everything but usually makes reasonably healthy choices, he doesn't exercise as much as he should but loses weight of he isn't careful to add in extra high calorie snacks. The other exercises more, eats less but loves things like cheese and chocolate so really has to be careful as he puts weight on even thinking about cheese on toast. Brought up exactly the same with the same exposure to mcds. We go maybe a couple of times a year.

It's not just the food, it's the inexorable tide of planet-destroying plastic crap made by slave labour in China I object to.

Our coeliac son didn't see his recent service station lunch as a 'treat', if I'm honest...

multivac if it was in a service station, wasn't there somewhere else you could have bought his lunch?

Not within our budget on that occasion, alas - and besides, I was pitching it as something of a 'treat'. He did enjoy the milkshake although god knows what was in it in fairness.

We did address the allergy/intolerance/ coeliac issue in the focus group. Let's hope they listened.

I suspect they'd be too terrified of cross-contamination to introduce officially gf buns, sadly.

Our chip shop does gluten free Mondays. Maybe they could do something similar even if it was only once a month? Dairy free days or milkshakes would be good too. That's what I was meaning earlier. It's a cheap eating out option for people who otherwise couldn't. I think being supportive of attempts to make it more inclusive and healthy is better than slagging it off. They aren't going anywhere. I don't see Dominos etc getting the same treatment and pizza is more calorific and less portion controlled.

I agree re the packaging etc though. Recently our local one seems to have new bin areas to help with recycling.

^this.

No multivac, I think the gf option will still be no bun. 😢

I used to by a McDonald's hater, would never let my PFB go. I've had more kids now though and really don't care all as much about their health, too busy trying to keep them alive. I'm excited to hear if they have FINALY added a vegetarian option to the Happy Meals. Burger King do.

If you don't like it - don't go.

Every Mumsnetter is a fully grown adult I do wonder and therefore canmake a choice to attend, support it, not support it etc.

People are smart enough to not instantly buy something because it's on Mumsnet.

I do wonder if some people wake up having a daily quota of whinge.

On the back of this thread, we were a bit pushed for time with various things the other night so I offered my teens the option of having their dinner in McDs or Sainsburys, they opted for the latter. However, as we were getting out the car they were sniping at each other about something stupid and so I turned round and said that maybe since they were behaving like toddlers we should go for a Happy Meal instead. DS1 then said while looking at his brother "more like an unHappy meal". :o

😂 Sharp as a tack!

I think any food in moderation is fine.

This is not about that though really is it?

It’s all about money. The bottom line is money.

Yes, well, pretty much everything in life is about money. The point is that McDs will exist and make money regardless. MN had an opportunity to exert a little influence over the menu and make it overall a bit healthier. people are going to go there and spend money regardless. If individuals don't like it, that's fine of course and you pay your money and make your choice.

I really don't think your average MN'er is going to think "I really hate McDs and all they stand for but MN is endorsing them so I think I will change my mind" It may however encourage people who would prefer a healthier choice to give it a try, but if it doesn't meet what they are looking for then I doubt they will be back. In the meantime, people who maybe didn't care whether it was healthy or not are possibly going to have a healthier meal there than they otherwise might have had.

I agree that they need more veggie options, especially for kids.

Will happy meals still be coming with some completely useless plastic tat to needlessly pollute our planet?

I’m really not interested in the food. If I can’t be completely environmentally negligent at the same time, I’m not interested.