Mc Donalds fries/chips very salt content in Ireland.

Greenman

On a recent visit to Ireland from Belgium I twice visited Mc Donalds as I had kiddies with me. I was shocked at the high salt content in the fries/chips. On my second visit I asked from minimum salt this seemed to be either ignored or forgotten.


I really do not get it. As some of us know salt is the silent killer. If Mc Donalds used less salt its less off the bottom line.


Was I just unlucky or do Irish Mc Donalds have higher salt content? On visits to Mc Donalds Belgium,France,Germany and Morocco I was never struck by a high or over high salt content.


I have brought this issue to the attention of Mc Donalds Ireland and they are looking into it LOL.


Anyway just thought I'd share my experience.

Mellor

I'm not entirely sure what you are saying tbh.
You start off saying you found the salt content high in Belgium. Then talk about McDonald's Ireland. And say you didn't find the salt high in a list of countries, including Belgium.

In general I think salt content varies depending on location. It's poured on too my who ever serves. But the salt shaker is massive everywhere. I think it's always going to be high.

Mellor

Mellor wrote: »

I'm not entirely sure what you are saying tbh.
You start off saying you found the salt content high in Belgium.

Nah he said on a visit to ireland from belgium

I don't notice the salt in them myself on the rare occasion I have them but then if I'm eating chips I want salty anyway.
I don't think it's that big a deal considering mcdonalds isn't the healthiest of food in general anyway, should only be eaten once in a while, and i don't think a bit less salt used in prep is going to make a difference

Alf Veedersane

The problem with McDonalds fries, or one of them at least, is that they have no actual taste so all you get is the salt.

28064212

I went to the McDonalds official nutritional site, and went in once to the Belgium site and once to the Irish site. Results below for large and medium fries, Belgian on the left (the salt content is the one with the arrow pointing to it):


So there's actually about half as much salt in the Irish fries.

Of course, I don't think that's including salt that's poured on to the fries after they're prepared. Been a long time since I was in a McD's, but I didn't think they actually poured salt on to the fries after prep, that's what all the little sachets are for?

They have a salt shaker and give them a quick go when they're pouring them into the fryer

28064212

bluewolf wrote: »

They have a salt shaker and give them a quick go when they're pouring them into the fryer

In that case it's entirely dependent on the person actually doing the shaking. I doubt that Irish people are generally more likely to add extra salt than Belgium people, and two visits definitely aren't enough to base it on

IngazZagni

I travel around Europe often, and while I don't visit McDonald's very often I find when I do, the chips in Southern European countries have a lot more salt pored on them. From what I can tell this is salt pored on them after they are cooked. The fries in Ireland are a lot less salty in my experience.

rubadub

Greenman wrote: »

On my second visit I asked from minimum salt this seemed to be either ignored or forgotten.

If I was fussy I would ask for no added salt, and get a sachet and add my own.

Its poured on manually, and people will tend to add what they think is right, just like in the local chipper 1 guy pours loads of salt n vinegar on, the other guy doesn't.

You can't look at nutritional info sites for this manually & randomly added ingredient.

conzy

Its irrelevant really. If your going to have McDonalds, enjoy it, forget about it.

Worrying about salt content of food which is pure rubbish is silly. It should be an occasional part of your diet so I wouldn't worry about it

joeguevara

The salt shakers in McDondalds are calibrated and it is very process driven. It is not like in your local chipper where they pour the salt from the normal bottle with no cut off. The salt shakers in McDonalds only allow you to pour in a particular amount of salt. You would have to put it down pick it up and pour again for more salt. They are actually trained on pouring salt on the fries.

rawn

I used to work in Mcdonalds. Every batch of fries get a good shake of salt when they're taken from the fryer (to make you nice and thirsty). If you want yours salt-less you have to ask them to give you some fresh ones from the next batch before they salt them. Only takes a few minutes if they're busy. But as a few people have said, no one goes to McDonalds looking for healthy options. That doesn't make sense.