EXTENDED ESSAY IN BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

SESSION: MAY 2021

Title: An Evaluation of the Sustainable Practices of McDonald’s

Research Question:

“To what extent do the sustainable practices used by McDonald’s

enable its growth in India?”

Candidate Personal Code: hvs884

Word count: 4000

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

My immense gratitude to my IBDP Coordinator, Extended Essay Coordinator, and

my Extended Essay Supervisor for their guidance and encouragement.

Special thanks to my family and peers for their endless support.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Introduction…………………………………………………………...…………… 4

1.1. About Sustainability in Businesses...……………………..……………… 4

1.2. About McDonald’s…………….…………………………………….……… 4

1.3. Inclusion of Sustainability by McDonald’s…..………………………...…. 5

2. Methodology & Limitations.………………………………………..………...… 7

3. Sustainable practices of McDonald’s…………………………………………. 9

3.1. Entry of McDonald’s into India……………………………………………. 9

3.2. Production of Biodiesel from Used cooking oil………….………………. 9

3.3. 100% Recyclable Packaging……………………………………………. 10

4. Investigation and Discussion…………………………………………………. 11

4.1. Strategic Evaluation of Biodiesel Production from Used Oil…….…… 11

4.2. VRIO Framework: Biodiesel Production from Used Oil…………….… 13

4.3. Force-field Analysis: Aim of 100% Recyclable Packaging…..……...…15

4.4. Financial Analysis………………………………………………………… 19

4.5. Carroll’s CSR Pyramid: Recycled Biodiesel & Aim of 100% Recyclable

Packaging……………………………………………………….………… 22

4.6. Comparison with competitor………………………………………..…… 25

5. Conclusion……………………………………………………………...……...… 28

6. Bibliography…………………………………………………………....….…….. 30

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1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 About Sustainability in Businesses

The Harvard Business Review in its article, A Step Toward Making Your Company

More Sustainable identifies the implementation of “circular economy” as a vital step

towards a sustainable business. This involves a business reutilising its resources in

order to save volumes of its costs.1 Before this, though many companies tried to

obtain sustainability in their operation management, its integration was superficial

and unclear. The attempts at seeking sustainibility are crucial as it aids a business to

obtain competitive advantage. According to Dr Johnson, of Hult International

Business School, consumers are willing to pay premium-price for brands that

promote sustainability.2 As a result, companies are adopting sustainability to gain an

edge over rivals. One such company is McDonald’s, which has developed ambitious

sustainable goals in India, and awaits their fruition. 3 These sustainable goals and

practices will be evaluated in this essay.

1.2 About McDonald’s

McDonald’s started in California in 1948 and is now “one of the most successful

global restaurant chains” according to Mr Muitaba. 4 It was founded by Maurice and

Richard McDonald’s, and later Ray Kroc bought rights to franchise McDonald’s to

1
Frankenberger, Karolin, et al. "A Step Toward Making Your Company More Sustainable." Harvard Business Review,
11 Jan. 2021, hbr.org/2021/01/a-step-toward-making-your-company-more-sustainable. Accessed 16 Jan. 2021.
2
Rosmarin, Remi. "Sustainability Sells: Why Consumers and Clothing Brands Alike Are Turning to Sustainability As a
Guiding Light." Business Insider, 22 Apr. 2020, www.businessinsider.com/sustainability-as-a-value-is-changing-how-
consumers-shop. Accessed 22 Jan. 2020.
3
Mehmet, Sam. “McDonald's: The Better M Initiative towards Sustainability.” New Food Magazine, 14 Nov.
2019, www.newfoodmagazine.com/news/98895/mcdonalds-the-better-m-initiative-towards-sustainability/.
Accessed 14 Jan. 2020
4
Mujtaba, Bahaudin G., and Bina Patel. “McDonalds Success Strategy And Global Expansion Through Customer And
Brand Loyalty.” Journal of Business Case Studies (JBCS), vol. 3, no. 3, 2007, pp. 01–02., doi:10.19030/jbcs.v3i3.4857.
Accessed 14 Jan. 2020.

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operate worldwide. Kroc incorporated McDonald’s Corporation and opened the first

franchised restaurant in Illinois in 1955. 5 By 2019, the company was serving

culturally-specialised menu of quality food and beverages in more than 100

countries.6

1.3 Inclusion of Sustainability by McDonald’s

A 2004 documentary, Supersize Me, substantiated the psychological and

physiological harms to the character that fed solely on McDonald’s food for a month

and became aware of its adverse effects.7 Following that, McDonald’s tried to protect

its image by including healthy items in its menu.8 However, its brand image further

deteriorated with accusations against its effect on environment, compelling investors

to demand a reduction in its emission of greenhouse gas. 9 In India, specifically,

McDonald’s faced backlash due to concerns about its methods of making the

burgers. The concerns reached a new peak when in Thane, a city in India, protestors

demolished a McDonald’s restaurant.10

5
Reed, Eric. "History of McDonald's: Timeline and Facts." TheStreet, 2 Jan. 2020,
www.thestreet.com/markets/history-of-mcdonalds-15128096. Accessed 18 Jan. 2020
6
Tyler, Jessica. “Here's What McDonald's Restaurants Look like around the World.” Business Insider, 9 Oct. 2018,
www.businessinsider.in/retail/heres-what-mcdonalds-restaurants-look-like-around-the-world/articleshow/
66140494.cms. Accessed 14 Jan. 2020.
7
Coombes, Rebecca. “McDonald's Profits Drop and Mars Abandons King Size Bars.” BMJ (Clinical Research Ed.), BMJ
Publishing Group Ltd., 9 Oct. 2004, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC521608/. Accessed 14 Jan. 2020.
8
Business Insider India. “McDonald's CEO Was Just Fired over a Relationship with an Employee. Here Are 18 Major
Changes He Made during 4 Years at the Helm of the Fast-Food Giant.” Business Insider, Business Insider India, 4 Nov.
2019, www.businessinsider.in/slideshows/miscellaneous/mcdonalds-ceo-was-just-fired-over-a-relationship-with-an-
employee-here-are-18-major-changes-he-made-during-4-years-at-the-helm-of-the-fast-food-giant-/slidelist/
71913879.cms. Accessed 14 Jan. 2020.
9
Busby, Mattha. “Investors Urge KFC, McDonald's and Burger King to Cut Emissions.” The Guardian, Guardian News
and Media, 29 Jan. 2019, www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jan/29/investors-urge-kfc-mcdonalds-and-
burger-king-to-cut-emissions. Accessed 14 Jan. 2020.
10
“McDonald’s Entry to India.” Assignment Point, www.assignmentpoint.com/business/mcdonalds-entry-to-
india.html. Accessed 15 Jan. 2020.

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To improve its corporate image, McDonald’s resorted to plan different sustainable

practices.11 Thus, McDonald’s increasing brand image may be attributed to its ethical

approaches; however, sustainability comes with high-cost burdens for businesses. 12

To investigate the financial viability of such practices in the context of Indian market,

the following research question was formulated: “To what extent do the

sustainable practices used by McDonald’s enable its growth in India?”

To maintain its focus, this essay will comprise the evaluation of two sustainable

practices of McDonald’s:

1. Its collaboration with Unicon Biofuels to make biodiesel from used oil. 13

2. Its goal to convert all its packaging to be 100% recyclable by 2025. 14

While one practice has recently been implemented, the other one is a futuristic aim.

The future impacts of these practices on McDonald’s will be evaluated in this essay.

Word count: 470

11
“Chapter 12: The Battle to Lead Both Business and Society (The Profits of Sustainability).” The Battle to Do Good:
inside McDonald's Sustainability Journey, by Bob Langert, Emrald Publishing, 2019.
12
Richard A. Clarke,  Robert N. Stavins. “The Challenge of Going Green.” Harvard Business Review, 1 Aug. 2014,
hbr.org/1994/07/the-challenge-of-going-green?registration=success. Accessed 30 Jan. 2020.
13
“McDonald's Is Using Cooking Oil to Fuel Trucks; Here's How They're Doing It.” Business Today, 25 July 2018,
www.businesstoday.in/sectors/auto/mcdonalds-cooking-oil-fuel-trucks--how-they-doing-it/story/280661.html.
Accessed 2 Feb. 2020.
14
Altmin, Lauren. “By 2025, All of McDonald's Packaging to Come from Renewable, Recycled or Certified Sources;
Goal to Have Recycling Available in All Restaurants.” McDonald's - Official Global Corporate Website,
corporate.mcdonalds.com/corpmcd/en-us/our-stories/article/ourstories.renewable_packaging.html. Accessed 18
Jan. 2020.

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2. METHODOLOGY & LIMITATIONS

Secondary sources such as research papers, academic journals, books, online

articles and videos were utilised. The research papers heavily relied on were from

Harvard Business Review, along with academic papers written by Anuj Kumar

Chandel, and Edwin Locke. Though the findings of many research papers may be

applied to the current time, their publishing-date makes them less credible.

Capitalism and Freedom and The Battle to Do Good: Inside McDonald’s

Sustainability Journey were the books that were dominantly referred to for the essay.

Statistical and financial data were obtained from Statista and the Indian franchisee of

McDonald’s: Westlife Development. However, taking financial data from Westlife

Development entailed a risk of window-dressing, especially during the coronavirus

pandemic to attract investors. Additionally, a statistical graph from Global Petrol

Price was used to forecast the price of oil; however, the future prices may change

because of the possibility of unforeseen circumstances.

Articles from different web pages were referred to, including various articles from

The Guardian and Business Insider. However, the articles from Business Insider that

portrayed the consumer preference towards sustainable products (and businesses)

were about products in general and not specifically for the fast-food industry.

Therefore, the findings were assumed to be true for the fast-food industry as well.

Additionally, many of the online newspaper organisations may evaluate McDonald’s

from a biased viewpoint because they may want to be in good relations with

McDonald’s.

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Web pages were used to gain insights into business tools and evaluation is

structured as follows:

Strategic Evaluation: to analyse McDonald’s venture with Unicon Biofuels and its

pros and cons in the short and long run.

VRIO Framework: to position McDonald’s production of biofuel in giving a

“sustainable competitive advantage”.15

Force-field analysis: to weigh the effects of McDonald’s plan of 100% recycled

packaging.

Financial Analysis (Net Profit Margin): to evaluate the futuristic trend in financial

gains from sustainable practices of McDonald’s.

Carroll’s CSR pyramid: to examine the production of biodiesel and to examine the

aim of recyclable packaging as the attainment of philanthropic responsibility.

Comparison with competitor: to juxtapose McDonald’s with its rival, Burger King,

and to compare their devotion to sustainability.

Word count: 357

15
“VRIO Framework EXPLAINED with EXAMPLES: B2U.” Business, 26 July 2020, www.business-to-you.com/vrio-from-
firm-resources-to-competitive-advantage/. Accessed 12 Mar. 2020.

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3. SUSTIAINABLE PRACTICES OF MCDONALD’S

3.1 Entry of McDonald’s into India

McDonald’s entered India in 1996 and for years it accumulated losses. 16 It operates

through Hardcastle Restaurants Pvt. Ltd. (HRPL) across South and West India and

HRPL is a subsidiary of Westlife Development Limited. The Connaught Plaza

Restaurants Ltd. operated in north-east India 17 until McDonald’s bought its 50%

stake and acquired its ownership in 2019. 18

3.2 Production of Biodiesel

McDonald’s expanded its biodiesel program in 2018 to include 85 restaurants. HRPL

is using biodiesel from cooking oil to fuel delivery trucks in Mumbai. 19 In his research,

Mr Chandel stated that biodiesels reduce pollution by almost 70%. 20 Another

research by Mr Gheewala, which focused on India, stated that the production of

biofuels employs “100 times more workers… than the fossil fuel industry”. 21 Dr. Eric

Larson agrees that production of biofuels is encouraged by many governments and

16
The Economic Times. "After 22 Years, McDonald's Makes Its 1st India Profit." The Economic Times, 26 Dec. 2018,
economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/hotels-/-restaurants/after-22-years-mcdonalds-makes-its-1st-
india-profit/the-ups-and-downs/slideshow/67256489.cms. Accessed 24 Jan. 2020.
17
The Economic Times. "Vikram Bakshi is Finally Out, and McDonald's India is Lovin' It." The Economic Times,
13 May 2019, economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/hotels-/-restaurants/vikram-bakshi-is-finally-out-
and-mcdonalds-india-is-lovin-it/articleshow/69309704.cms?from=mdr. Accessed 24 Jan. 2020.
18
Bhushan, Ratna. “McDonald's Buys Vikram Bakshi's 50% Stake in Connaught Plaza Restaurants.” The Economic
Times, Economic Times, 9 May 2019, economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/cons-products/food/mcdonalds-buys-
vikram-bakshis-50-stake-in-connaught-plaza-restaurants/articleshow/69254066.cms?from=mdr . Accessed 24 Jan.
2020.
19
Frangoul, Anmar. "McDonald’s Restaurants in India Are Using Cooking Oil to Power Delivery Trucks." CNBC,
24 July 2018, www.cnbc.com/2018/07/24/mcdonalds-restaurants-in-india-are-using-cooking-oil-to-power-
deliver.html. Accessed 25 Jan. 2020
20
Chandel, Anuj Kumar, et al. “Economic Evaluation and Environmental Benefits of Biofuel: an Indian Perspective.”
International Journal of Global Energy Issues, vol. 28, no. 4, 2007, p. 357., doi:10.1504/ijgei.2007.016249. Accessed 4
Feb. 2020.
21
Gheewala, Shabbir H., et al. “Biofuels: Economic, Environmental and Social Benefits and Costs for Developing
Countries in Asia.” Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, vol. 4, no. 6, 2013, pp. 497–511.,
doi:10.1002/wcc.241. Accessed 5 Feb. 2020.

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is hence subsidised.22 Not only will this give McDonald’s additional revenue, but it

may also gain the support of Indian government. The anticipated plan of McDonald’s

is to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 36% by 2030. 23

3.3 100% Recyclable Packaging

The fast-food giant McDonald’s announced that all its packaging will come from

sustainable materials by 2025.24 In a journal published by Elsevier, the authors claim

that technologies used to recycle materials are “external benefits” 25 because they

help businesses to cut costs, meaning that McDonald’s benefits from recycled

packaging. Also, K. Verghese and H. Lewis, in their research journal, assert how a

change in packaging may be useful to a business only when there are financial

benefits.26 This may direct attention to McDonald’s financial benefits; however, it may

also question whether the financial benefits are large enough to be profitable.

Word count: 284

22
Larson, Eric D. “Biofuel Production Technologies: Status, Prospects and Implications for Trade and Development .”
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Section 4.4), pp. 23–25.,
doi:https://unctad.org/system/files/official-document/ditcted200710_en.pdf. Accessed 5 Feb. 2020.
23
Frangoul, Anmar. "McDonald’s Restaurants in India Are Using Cooking Oil to Power Delivery Trucks." CNBC,
24 July 2018, www.cnbc.com/2018/07/24/mcdonalds-restaurants-in-india-are-using-cooking-oil-to-power-
deliver.html. Accessed 25 Jan. 2020
24
“McDonald's Aims for Fully Recycled Packaging by 2025.” BBC News, BBC, 16 Jan. 2018,
www.bbc.com/news/business-42704291. Accessed 28 Mar. 2020..
25
Cruz, Nuno Ferreira Da, et al. “Costs and Benefits of Packaging Waste Recycling Systems.” Resources, Conservation
and Recycling, vol. 85, 2014, pp. 1–4., doi:10.1016/j.resconrec.2014.01.006. Accessed 24 Jan. 2020.
26
Verghese, K., and H. Lewis. “Environmental Innovation in Industrial Packaging: a Supply Chain Approach.”
International Journal of Production Research, vol. 45, no. 18-19, 2007, pp. 4381–4401.,
doi:10.1080/00207540701450211. Accessed 30 Jan. 2020.

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4. INVESTIGATION AND DISCUSSION

4.1 Strategic Evaluation of Production of Biodiesel from Used Cooking Oil

By forming a joint venture with Unicon Biofuels to convert its used oil into biodiesel,

McDonald’s is involving in a new practice in India.27 This may entail high risks for

McDonald’s as it is the first to attempt such a cradle-to-cradle design in India.

However, the risk may be reduced because of the skills Unicon Biofuels has in

Indian market, being an Indian-based company. Nonetheless, this venture in 2020

may not be financially beneficial as the pandemic caused the oil prices to reduce

drastically (shown in Figure 1). This means that if McDonald’s had not shifted to

biodiesel, then its transportation cost would have been low, providing it with a short-

term benefit.

Figure 1: Crude oil price fluctuations and forecast of India 28

However, the venture may have long-term benefits for McDonald’s as its

dependence on crude oil will reduce, and so it will be unaffected by the fluctuations
27
Cholia, Ami. “McDonald's Is Using Grease from Its Food to Power Its Delivery Trucks.” ZDNet, ZDNet, 5 July 2011,
www.zdnet.com/article/mcdonalds-is-using-grease-from-its-food-to-power-its-delivery-trucks/. Accessed 15 Feb.
2020.
28
“Mulye, Prathamesh. “Why India's Petrol Prices Remain Flat despite Global Crude Oil Crash.” Scroll.in, Scroll.in, 24
Apr. 2020, scroll.in/article/960046/why-indias-petrol-prices-remain-flat-despite-global-crude-oil-crash. Accessed 5
Oct. 2020.

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of the oil prices in India (Figure 1). For McDonald’s to cope with the oil price

fluctuations it will have to frequently review its prices and change them accordingly.

This requires continuous monitoring of prices and to print new menus, increasing the

cost. Also, in the following years, the oil prices are likely to rise; 29 however,

McDonald’s may not face increased costs because it does not have to rely on oil

transportation anymore.

In the future, McDonald’s may not have to worry about the demand for biodiesel as

McDonald’s is producing the biodiesel for itself. McDonald’s saves on its cost by

using a cheaper option than petrol, making it possible for it to be able to reduce its

product prices, and because the fast-food industry is heavily saturated 30 and

competitive,31 a price decrease may provide the company with a competitive edge.

Thus, a new pricing strategy for the products may be established in the near future,

improving its cashflow position. However, McDonald’s also may have to

simultaneously maintain the production of biodiesel with Unicon Biofuels, leading it to

hire more employees, increasing its cash outflow. 32

To further examine the production of biodiesel by McDonald’s and Unicon

Biofuels in terms of competitive advantage, a VRIO framework is applied.

Word count: 360

29
“Oil on the Boil: Post 4th Hike This Week, Petrol, Diesel Prices Touch All-Time High.” The Indian Express, 23 Jan.
2021, indianexpress.com/article/business/economy/oil-on-the-boil-post-4th-hike-this-week-petrol-diesel-prices-
touch-all-time-high-7159316/. Accessed 26 Jan. 2021.
30
Maze, Jonathan. “There Is No Room for Any More Restaurants.” Restaurant Business, Restaurant Business, 23 Oct.
2018, www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/financing/there-no-room-any-more-restaurants. Accessed 17 Feb. 2020.
31
Spain, William. “Fast-Food Outlook: Intense Competition, Margin Pressures.” MarketWatch, MarketWatch, 14 Jan.
2010, www.marketwatch.com/story/fast-food-2010-stiff-competition-margin-pressure-2010-01-14. Accessed 17
Feb. 2020.
32
“The Business Consequences of Excessive Work.” ELITE Institute, Sept. 2019, www.elitemv.com/2019/09/the-
business-consequences-of-excessive.html. Accessed 28 Feb. 2020.

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4.2 VRIO Framework: Production of Biodiesel from Used Oil

Figure 2: VRIO Framework33

Valuable

McDonald’s venture with Unicon Biofuels manifests McDonald’s efficiency in waste

management. It will also improve McDonald’s corporate image, reducing the

chances of pressure groups going against the company. With a “yes” in “valuable”,

the company proceeds to “rare”. This shows that McDonald’s is not at a competitive

disadvantage with the production of biodiesel, suggesting that it is not inferior to its

competitors.

Rare

It is less likely for competitors of McDonald’s to acquire sustainability in the field of

biodiesel because of the high risks and increased costs associated with the venture

of sustainibility.34 The rarity is further strengthened with both McDonald’s and Unicon

Biofuels together being the first group to introduce biofuels in the Indian fast-food

33
“VRIO Framework EXPLAINED with EXAMPLES: B2U.” Business, 26 July 2020, www.business-to-you.com/vrio-from-
firm-resources-to-competitive-advantage/. Accessed 12 Mar. 2020.
34
Frazee, Gretchen. “4 Reasons It's Hard to Become a Sustainable Business.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 23
Sept. 2019, www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/making-sense/4-reasons-its-hard-to-become-a-sustainable-business.
Accessed 5 Mar. 2020.

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industry.35 This shows that the competitors of McDonald’s do not yet possess this

capability, moving McDonald’s to “inimitable”. This prevents the “competitive

disparity” showing its uniqueness, and safeguarding the company from competition.

Inimitable

It may be difficult for other restaurant businesses to imitate this venture because of

the high initial costs. Moreover, McDonald’s may experience economies of scale due

to the large amounts of used cooking oil available, proven by the Indian McDonald’s

franchisee asserting that it is already converting 35,000 litres of cooking oil into

biofuel each month.36 Besides, many competitors of McDonald’s may wish to avoid

the complications posed by the bureaucracy when such ventures are undertaken.

Organised

McDonald’s could be considered well-organised to carry out a process that requires

extensive management. Also, because it has Unicon Biofuels alongside, it need not

be involved in the conversion process but may only manage the consumption and

transportation process. McDonald’s divisional organisational structure 37 also shows

that it can reap the benefits of producing biodiesel.

The framework shows how this capability of McDonald’s will give it a

sustained competitive advantage, aiding its growth. To evaluate another

sustainability plan (100% recyclable packaging) of McDonald’s, a force field

analysis is employed.

Word count: 324

35
Pinto, Viveat Susan. “McDonald's Does a First in India, Converts Used Cooking Oil into Biodiesel.” Business
Standard, Business-Standard, 23 July 2018, www.business-standard.com/article/companies/mcdonald-s-does-a-first-
in-india-converts-used-cooking-oil-into-biodiesel-118072301230_1.html. Accessed 5 Mar. 2020.
36
Ibid
37
Thompson, Andrew. “McDonald's Organizational Structure & Its Characteristics - An Analysis.” Panmore Institute,
26 Feb. 2019, panmore.com/mcdonalds-organizational-structure-analysis. Accessed 11 Mar. 2020.

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4.3 Force Field Analysis: 100% Recyclable Packaging

Figure 3: Force Field Analysis

With the goal of 100% recyclable packaging, McDonald’s may have to invest in

research and development. When McDonald’s invests in such practices, even in

India, it encourages innovation, and perhaps, increases the efficiency of recycling

the packaging. An article in Harvard Business Review stressed how dynamic

businesses are more likely to be successful. 38 However, the innovation may give

McDonald’s only short-term competitive advantage, that is, until its competitors also

implement the same methods, resulting in its driving force weight of only 2.

By working towards the fulfilment of its sustainable goals, McDonald’s will have an

improved corporate image. This will strengthen the company’s public recognition,

38
Alexander Osterwalder,  Tendayi Viki and Yves Pigneur. “Why Your Organization Needs an Innovation Ecosystem.”
Harvard Business Review, 15 Nov. 2019, hbr.org/2019/11/why-your-organization-needs-an-innovation-ecosystem.
Accessed 24 Feb. 2020.

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helping to develop trust in suppliers who may allow credit payments. This may help

improve McDonald’s cash flow position which may otherwise lead to its late

payments or seeking bank loans in India, which may increase its gearing ratio, and in

turn, it may decrease the number of potential Indian investors. Therefore, because of

its importance in freeing the cash flow, the driving force weighs 4.

The increased sales because of improved corporate image are short-term, but in the

long-term it is brand loyalty that will keep sales steady. 39 Studies have shown that

consumers assess the environmental impacts of the products they buy, making them

prefer sustainable products to environmentally harmful ones 40 as justified by social

signalling theory. Also, a report from the Capgemini Research Institute revealed that

88% of Indians are willing to buy more sustainable products, especially ones with

more sustainable packaging.41 Therefore, McDonald’s can increase product prices

without compromising its profit. However, a report from Forbes shows that Indian

businesses are becoming increasingly aware of their corporate social responsibility, 42

implying that McDonald’s competitors will also become sustainable, in the long run,

minimising its uniqueness; therefore the driving force weighs 3.

Sustainable packaging will improve intangible asset of relations with locals and

Indian government. The local authorities may prioritise McDonald’s over other

businesses, because of its sustainability efforts, reducing the time taken for

39
Miller, Joshua. “The Importance of Brand Loyalty.” Randall, 4 May 2017, www.randallreilly.com/the-importance-
of-brand-loyalty/. Accessed 25 Feb. 2020.
40
Martins, Andrew. “Your Customers Prefer Sustainable Products.” Business News Daily, 4 June 2019,
www.businessnewsdaily.com/15087-consumers-want-sustainable-products.html. Accessed 26 Feb. 2020.
41
Alves, Glynda. “Majority Indians Now Purchase Items Based on Social Responsibility, Inclusiveness and
Environmental Impact.” The Economic Times, Economic Times, 1 Aug. 2020,
economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/majority-indians-purchasing-based-on-social-responsibility-
inclusiveness-and-environmental-impact/articleshow/77299600.cms. Accessed 13 Aug. 2020
42
Goodera. “CSR And Sustainable Development: Do Indian Companies Care About The Environment?: Forbes India
Blog.” Forbes India, ForbesIndia, 5 Jan. 2017, www.forbesindia.com/blog/life/csr-and-sustainable-development-do-
indian-companies-care-about-the-environment/. Accessed 26 Feb. 2020.

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governmental bureaucracy. However, because many may consider sustainability to

be a duty, its importance reduces. This makes it have a low driving force weight of 2.

Many businesses avoid implementing such sustainable practices because they incur

costs,43 which may lead to lower dividends for shareholders. Shareholders are a

major source of funding and low dividends discourage their investing in McDonald’s.

The decreased profits may also jeopardise the survival of McDonald’s in its highly

saturated market. Furthermore, the decreased profits may deter banks from

providing loans. Also, to use only recyclable packaging, McDonald’s may have to

look for other certified suppliers of packaging materials, which may be expensive.

This adds weight to this force, giving the restraining force a value of 4.

The goal may also entail managerial burdens on McDonald’s as McDonald’s must

ensure that there are sufficient ways for customers to dispose recyclable packaging.

Moreover, McDonald’s has more than 160 restaurants in India; therefore, it will

involve high monitoring costs. Most of the McDonald’s restaurants in India are

franchises,44 making it even more difficult for McDonald’s to surveil their compliance

with the goal. However, research by Dr Edwin Locke asserts that “hard goals

produce high level of performance” from employees. 45 Therefore, McDonald’s

employee will be motivated to work hard as they have a specific goal to attain, as

asserted by Locke’s Goal Setting Theory,. However, because of the possibility of

over-pressurising of employees, the restraining force is given a weight of 3.

43
Joseph, Chris. “The Disadvantages of Going Green for a Corporation.” Small Business - Chron.com, Chron.com, 12
Feb. 2019, smallbusiness.chron.com/disadvantages-going-green-corporation-3318.html. Accessed 1 Mar. 2020.
44
“McDonald’s India (Details).” An Insight into McDonald's in India, 2018,
www.mcdonaldsindia.com/McDonaldsinIndia.pdf. Accessed 4 Mar. 2020.
45
Locke, Edwin A. “Toward a Theory of Task Motivation and Incentives.” Organizational Behavior and Human
Performance, vol. 3, no. 2, 1968, pp. 157–189., doi:10.1016/0030-5073(68)90004-4. Accessed 27 Mar. 2020.

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McDonald’s mentioned “100%” in its goal of recyclable packaging by 2025.46 Despite

its growth over the years, it may be difficult for it to have 100% of its consumer

packaging from recycled sources. This leads to the idea that if McDonald’s fails to

achieve this goal its rivals may spread negative publicity about McDonald’s leading

to a loss of customer trust and reduction in sales. However, given its huge size and

its economies of scale, it is likely that McDonald’s will not set unattainable goals.

Therefore, the restraining weight of 2.

To investigate the effect of the sustainable practices of McDonald’s in India

from a quantitative perspective, a financial analysis is undertaken.

Word count: 692

46
Altmin, Lauren. “By 2025, All of McDonald's Packaging to Come from Renewable, Recycled or Certified Sources;
Goal to Have Recycling Available in All Restaurants.” McDonald's - Official Global Corporate Website,
corporate.mcdonalds.com/corpmcd/en-us/our-stories/article/ourstories.renewable_packaging.html. Accessed 8
Mar. 2020.

18 | P a g e
4.4 Financial Analysis

Net profit margin (NPM)

The NPM signifies net profit generated as a percentage of sales revenue 47:
48
NPM= (Net profit / Sales revenue)*100

Table 1: Net profit margin for year 2014 to 2020 of McDonald’s in India (in million Indian Rupees) 49 50

Net Profit Margin

5
0
-5 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
-10
-15 Net Profit Margin
-20
-25
-30
-35
-40
-45

Figure 4: Trend of net profit margin in India

47
Murphy, Chris B. “How to Calculate Net Profit Margin.” Investopedia, Investopedia, 26 Feb. 2020,
www.investopedia.com/terms/n/net_margin.asp. Accessed 4 Apr 2020.
48
Hoang, Paul. Business and Management. 3rd ed., 2014.
49
McDonald. "Westlife Development Limited Annual Report 2017-18." Westlife Development,
www.westlife.co.in/download-pdf/Investor/AnnualReports/WDL_Annual%20Report-201718.pdf. Accessed
4 Apr. 2020.
50
McDonald. "Westlife Development Limited Integrated Annual Report FY2019-20." Page 35. Westlife Development,
www.westlife.co.in/download-pdf/Investor/AnnualReports/Annual%20Report%20FY20-Westlife.pdf. Accessed
25 Jun. 2020

19 | P a g e
The NPM for McDonald’s in India has started showing a positive trend since 2018,

the same year when McDonald’s scaled-up its venture with Unicon to multiple

restaurants in Mumbai. It is possible for this increase in NPM to be attributed to this

venture of McDonald’s, as it significantly increased its sales revenue. Also, the surge

in NPM can be because of the announcement that McDonald’s made in 2018

wherein it mentioned that it plans to use 100% recyclable packaging by 2025. This

announcement could have led to the increased popularity of McDonald’s in India,

causing an increase in its sales. While the NPM of 2.36% may appear to be low, the

high sales volume that a fast-food chain like McDonald’s experiences compensates

for it.

However, a limitation of the financial analysis is that the net profit used for NPM

calculation is after-tax reduction, because the financial data for net profits before tax

reduction for the years 2014-2018 was unavailable, and to maintain consistency of

data across all years, net profits after tax was taken. This makes the NPM less

accurate as tax rates can fluctuate and hence may affect historical comparison of the

NPM values. Another drawback of using NPM to evaluate the efficacy of sustainable

practices of McDonald’s is that NPM can be influenced by one-time asset sales

which would temporarily boost its value.

Additionally, for McDonald’s to sustain its NPM during the pandemic, it must adopt

cost-reduction strategies. This may include employing fewer workers. However, with

this, the remaining workers may have more work than before and may lead to low

motivation and job burnout. Instead, McDonald’s can reduce indirect costs by limiting

privileges to senior managers and relocating to places with cheaper rents. This will

help improve and sustain its NPM.

20 | P a g e
However, solely analysing profitability ratio may prevent understanding of

McDonald’s efficiency in employing its financial resources. This is because, NPM just

examines the profit in relation to the sales revenue, while not considering the

availability of capital used to generate that profit.

To discuss the qualitative and quantitative impacts of both sustainable

practices concerning corporate social responsibility, Carroll’s CSR Pyramid is

used.

Word count: 382

21 | P a g e
4.5 Carroll’s CRS Pyramid: Recycled Biodiesel & Aim of 100% Recyclable

Package

Figure 5: Carroll’s CSR Pyramid51

This framework enables businesses to know the stages in which they should

proceed to fulfil their corporate social responsibility. 52

The basic responsibility of McDonald’s is to be profitable, as economic responsibility

comes first in the pyramid. This coincides with Milton Friedman’s view that “there is

… only one social responsibility of business … to increase its profits.” 53 The

sustainability of McDonald’s may make it profitable. In the previous analysis of the

essay, Section 4.4, sustainable practices of McDonald’s are quantitatively evaluated

and attributed to its increasing trend of the Net Profit Margin, thus fulfilling the

economic responsibility of McDonald’s.

The second level is legal responsibility which requires McDonald’s to follow

regulations. McDonald’s obeys the code of conduct of international organisations

51
Thacker, Hency. “Understanding the Four Levels of CSR.” The CSR Journal, 15 Oct. 2020,
thecsrjournal.in/understanding-the-four-levels-of-csr/. Accessed 7 Apr. 2020.
52
“Carroll's CSR Pyramid: Business.” tutor2u, 31 Oct. 2019, www.tutor2u.net/business/reference/carrolls-csr-
pyramid. Accessed 7 Apr. 2020.
53
“Social Responsibility of Business and Labor.” Capitalism and Freedom, by Milton Friedman et al., The University of
Chicago Press, 2015.

22 | P a g e
that is applicable even in India; McDonald’s has attained legal responsibility. 54 This

makes it reach the third level.

The ethical responsibility refers to McDonald’s doing what is right. This may include

maintaining good relations with suppliers and employees. McDonald’s has carried

out a variety of ethical practices55 including the promotion of women empowerment

within a company in India.56

McDonald’s partnering with Unicon Biofuels and its aim of recyclable packaging are

both its means to fulfil the philanthropic responsibility. The fourth level represents

the need for businesses to aid society, and by promoting the use of biodiesel,

McDonald’s is helping the Indian economy by reducing its reliance on fossil fuels. 57

However, this cradle-to-cradle venture may not be cost-effective for McDonald’s.

On the other hand, while McDonald’s recycling of packages may be beneficial for the

environment, McDonald’s may need to make investments in technology to be able to

attain its aim. This, again, maybe a burden on its cost of production. However, Yael

Aflalo (the founder of sustainable fashion brand, Reformation) has countered this

notion by asserting that sustainability is minimizing the wastages and using material

efficiently, which ultimately leads to savings. 58

54
“Codes of Conduct.” McDonald's, corporate.mcdonalds.com/corpmcd/investors-relations/codes-of-conduct.html.
Accessed 9 Apr. 2020.
55
“McDonald's – Ethical Practice.” rmtheory2practice, 20 Oct. 2014,
rmtheory2practice.wordpress.com/2014/10/20/mcdonalds-ethical-practice/. Accessed 9 Apr. 2020.
56
McDonald's. “Empowering Our Women To Be The Best - McDonald's Blog.” McDonald's India | McDonald's Blog,
10 Oct. 2019, mcdonaldsblog.in/2019/03/empowering-our-women-to-be-the-best/. Accessed 11 Apr. 2020.
57
“McDonald's Is Using Cooking Oil to Fuel Trucks; Here's How They're Doing It.” Business News - Latest Stock
Market and Economy News India, 25 July 2018, www.businesstoday.in/sectors/auto/mcdonalds-cooking-oil-fuel-
trucks--how-they-doing-it/story/280661.html. Accessed 12 Apr. 2020
58
Rosmarin, Remi. "Sustainability Sells: Why Consumers and Clothing Brands Alike Are Turning to Sustainability As a
Guiding Light." Business Insider, 22 Apr. 2020, www.businessinsider.com/sustainability-as-a-value-is-changing-how-
consumers-shop. Accessed 22 Jan. 2020.

23 | P a g e
However, because Carroll’s CSR Pyramid does not consider the societal effects of

sustainability, Dr John Elkington’s triple bottom line is used:

Figure 6: Dr. John Elkington’s triple bottom line59

The model’s economic pillar is attained by McDonald’s as shown in its increasing

trend of NPM.

The people (social) pillar is sustained with employment generated by McDonald’s for

its sustainable practices.

Also, both sustinable practices of McDonald’s have positive environmental

implications.

Therefore, McDonald’s may satisfy the triple bottom line through its sustainability by

2025.

To analyse McDonald’s sustainable activities in comparison with another

business in the burger industry, McDonald’s is evaluated against Burger King.

Word count: 417

59
Desk, Sentinel Digital. “The Triple Bottom Line - Sentinelassam.” The Sentinel Assam, 30 June 2020,
www.sentinelassam.com/editorial/the-triple-bottom-line-485671. Accessed 13 Jul 2020.

24 | P a g e
4.6 Comparison with competitor

The burger industry offers binary choices: Burger King (BK) and McDonald’s.

Despite McDonald’s being a larger organisation than BK, 60 it faces tough competition

in the market of burgers. An article by The Economic Times showed how Indians

prefer Burger King over McDonald’s.61

BK also displayed its corporate social responsibility during the coronavirus outbreak.

It provided health care workers in Mumbai, a city in India, with free burgers. 62 Even

BK, like McDonald’s, is committed to breaking the gender gap in India. BK, in 2016,

partnered with ‘Room to Read India’, to promote women education. 63 Not only that, in

2018 BK partnered with Avasara Leadership Foundation, an organisation that

encourages leadership potential among young girls in India. 64

Figure 7: Comparison of McDonald’s & Burger King Royalty Revenue per Franchised Restaurant 65

It is clear from Figure 7 that BK’s royalty revenue, and hence, probably its net

revenue, is lower than that of McDonald’s; however, BK attempted to target

60
Majaski, Christina. “McDonald's vs. Burger King: What's the Difference?” Investopedia, Investopedia, 14 Jan. 2020,
www.investopedia.com/articles/markets/111015/mcdonalds-vs-burger-king-comparing-business-models.asp.
Accessed 20. Mar. 2020.
61
Vyas, Jwalit. “Burger King India Could Be a Better Treat than McDonald's Franchisee.” The Economic Times,
Economic Times, 18 Dec. 2019, economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/burger-king-india-could-be-a-
better-treat-than-mcdonalds-franchisee/articleshow/72863452.cms. Accessed 1 Apr. 2020.
62
Imchen, Atula. “Burger King India and Project Mumbai Salute Frontline Healthcare Workers.” CSR Mandate, 13
May 2020, www.csrmandate.org/burger-king-india-and-project-mumbai-salute-frontline-healthcare-workers/.
Accessed 1 Jun. 2020.
63
CSR Mandate. “Burger King India Partners With Room To Read India.” CSR Mandate, 1 June 2017,
www.csrmandate.org/burger-king-india-partners-with-room-to-read-india/. Accessed 1 Jun. 2020.
64
“Burger King And Mumbai Indians Strengthen Their Partnership To Promote Leadership Potential Among Young
Girls.” CSRBOX, 16 May 2016, csrbox.org/India_CSR_news_Burger-King-And-Mumbai-Indians-strengthen-Their-
Partnership-To-Promote-Leadership-Potential-Among-Young-Girls_302. Accessed 1 Jun. 2020.
65
“McDonald's Vs. Burger King: A Closer Look At Two Burger Giants.” Nasdaq, 20 Sept. 2017,
www.nasdaq.com/articles/mcdonalds-vs-burger-king-closer-look-two-burger-giants-2017-09-20. Accessed 22 Sept.
2020.

25 | P a g e
McDonald’s sales with its promotional strategies. It partnered with Mental Health

American and introduced meals related to a sad mood. 66 This was a contradiction to

McDonald’s “happy meal”, with BK normalising sadness and mental health issues.

BK also made an advertisement, ‘The Whooper of Secrets’, which revealed that in

every earlier whooper advertisement of BK, it had placed a McDonald’s Big Mac

behind.67 As the presence of the Big Mac went unnoticed in all of the advertisements

BK mocked the name “Big Mac” with its size being smaller than BK’s whooper. 68

However, despite BK’s effort at degrading McDonald’s, McDonald’s still maintained

its position at the top with the highest brand value as previously shown in Figure 8,

which may be due to its existing brand loyalty because of its sustainable practices.

Figure 8: McDonald’s Brand Value in comparison to its competitors 69

66
“MHA Excited to Partner with Burger King Restaurants ‘Real Meal’ Boxes.” Mental Health America, 1 May 2019,
www.mhanational.org/mha-excited-partner-burger-king-restaurants-real-meal-boxes. Accessed 26 Mar. 2020.
67
“Burger King | A Whopper of a Secret.” Burger King UK, Dec. 2019, www.youtube.com/watch?
v=BfEEY1nmW8o&feature=youtu.be. Accessed 25 Mar. 2020.
68
Watson, Imogen. “Burger King Reveals There's Been a Big Mac Hidden in Every Whopper Ad This Year.” The Drum,
The Drum, 23 Dec. 2019, www.thedrum.com/news/2019/12/23/burger-king-reveals-theres-been-big-mac-hidden-
every-whopper-ad-year. Accessed 26 Mar. 2020.
69
Lock, Published by S., and Jul 1. “Fast Food Industry Market Share Worldwide, by Brand 2019.” Statista, 1 July
2020, www.statista.com/statistics/273057/value-of-the-most-valuable-fast-food-brands-worldwide/. Accessed 21
Jan. 2020.

26 | P a g e
BK and McDonald’s can also be compared on their promotion of sustainability. BK

surpasses McDonald’s in this because BK ensures that its sustainable practices are

publicised through above the line promotions. In 2020, BK released a song-

advertisement that conveys its reduction of methane emission. 70 This helped it gain

attention while also being shown as socially-responsible. 71 Contrastingly, McDonald’s

lacks such promotion strategies for its sustainable practices.

In order to be competitive, McDonald’s may use guerrilla marketing to advertise its

sustainable practices. This will help it reach smaller target groups who are usually

ignored by above the line promotion strategies. However, a disadvantage is that it

may be considered unethical because of its unconventional approach.

Word count: 390

70
“Burger King | Cows Menu.” Burger King Sustainability, 17 July 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?
v=zNI8zVmHCng. Accessed 20 Aug. 2020.
71
Dan, Avi. “Burger King's New Weird Whopper Ad, Featuring Farting Cows.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 21 July
2020, www.forbes.com/sites/avidan/2020/07/21/burger-kings-new-weird-whopper-ad-featuring-farting-
cows/?sh=6d0d89911b75. Accessed 20 Aug. 2020.

27 | P a g e
5. CONCLUSION

The research undertaken for the essay targeted to answer “To what extent do the

sustainable practices used by McDonald’s enable its growth in India?” Various types

of qualitative and quantitative data were used to support the research.

The strategic evaluation helped in assessing the strengths and weaknesses of

McDonald’s venture with Unicon Biofuels in India for the short and the long term.

While the VRIO framework concluded that the activity of production of biodiesel

gives McDonald’s a sustainable competitive advantage over other Indian

competitors, it also hinted at the short longevity of the advantage. Force-field

analysis revealed that McDonald’s plan of 100% sustainable packaging will be

advantageous for the company in both qualitative and quantitative terms. However, a

limitation of the Force Field Analysis is that it was heavily based on predictions and

therefore it is possible that the weights attached may not represent the actual

significance. Despite sustainable practices being a burden on McDonald’s, they may

prove to be beneficial owing to the quantitative gains. This is shown through the

Financial Analysis which attribute a part of the increased NPM trend to McDonald’s

sustainable practices. However, the NPM calculated is affected by the annual tax

rates, making historical comparisons less reliable. Further examination of both the

sustainable practices was done through Carroll’s CSR pyramid. McDonald’s was

then compared with BK, to understand the sustainable strategies of its competitors.

A major limitation is that it is difficult to quantify the monetary value of the intangible

assets (such as brand loyalty and goodwill) that McDonald’s gained through these

sustainable practices in India. The scope for further research remains open in the

ways that McDonald’s can market these sustainable practices in India. This is

28 | P a g e
because it is important for McDonald’s to convey to its customers that it is a

sustainable business to gain widespread recognition and increased sales. While this

was superficially evaluated in Section 4.6, more advanced methods of promotion can

be considered.

Word count: 324

29 | P a g e
6. BIBLIOGRAPHY

6.1 Books

“Chapter 12: The Battle to Lead Both Business and Society (The Profits of
Sustainability).” The Battle to Do Good: inside McDonald's Sustainability
Journey, by Bob Langert, Emrald Publishing, 2019.

Hoang, Paul. Business and Management. 3rd ed., 2014.

“Social Responsibility of Business and Labor.” Capitalism and Freedom, by Milton

Friedman et al., The University of Chicago Press, 2015.

6.2 Research Papers

Alexander Osterwalder,  Tendayi Viki and Yves Pigneur. “Why Your Organization
Needs an Innovation Ecosystem.” Harvard Business Review, 15 Nov. 2019,
hbr.org/2019/11/why-your-organization-needs-an-innovation-ecosystem.
Accessed 24 Feb. 2020.

Chandel, Anuj Kumar, et al. “Economic Evaluation and Environmental Benefits of

Biofuel: an Indian Perspective.” International Journal of Global Energy Issues,
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2020.

Cruz, Nuno Ferreira Da, et al. “Costs and Benefits of Packaging Waste Recycling
Systems.” Resources, Conservation and Recycling, vol. 85, 2014, pp. 1–4.,
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Frankenberger, Karolin, et al. "A Step Toward Making Your Company More
Sustainable." Harvard Business Review, 11 Jan. 2021, hbr.org/2021/01/a-
step-toward-making-your-company-more-sustainable. Accessed
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Gheewala, Shabbir H., et al. “Biofuels: Economic, Environmental and Social Benefits
and Costs for Developing Countries in Asia.” Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews:
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Larson, Eric D. “Biofuel Production Technologies: Status, Prospects and Implications

for Trade and Development .” United Nations Conference on Trade and
Development (Section 4.4), pp. 23–25.,
doi:https://unctad.org/system/files/official-document/ditcted200710_en.pdf.
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Locke, Edwin A. “Toward a Theory of Task Motivation and Incentives.”
Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, vol. 3, no. 2, 1968, pp.
157–189., doi:10.1016/0030-5073(68)90004-4. Accessed 27 Mar. 2020.

Mujtaba, Bahaudin G., and Bina Patel. “McDonalds Success Strategy And Global
Expansion Through Customer And Brand Loyalty.” Journal of Business Case
Studies (JBCS), vol. 3, no. 3, 2007, pp. 01–02., doi:10.19030/jbcs.v3i3.4857.
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Richard A. Clarke,  Robert N. Stavins. “The Challenge of Going Green.” Harvard

Business Review, 1 Aug. 2014, hbr.org/1994/07/the-challenge-of-going-
green?registration=success. Accessed 30 Jan. 2020.

Verghese, K., and H. Lewis. “Environmental Innovation in Industrial Packaging: a

Supply Chain Approach.” International Journal of Production Research, vol.
45, no. 18-19, 2007, pp. 4381–4401., doi:10.1080/00207540701450211.
Accessed 30 Jan. 2020.

6.3 Statistical Graphs / Diagrams

Desk, Sentinel Digital. “The Triple Bottom Line - Sentinelassam.” The Sentinel
Assam, 30 June 2020, www.sentinelassam.com/editorial/the-triple-bottom-
line-485671. Accessed 13 Jul 2020.

Lock, Published by S., and Jul 1. “Fast Food Industry Market Share Worldwide, by
Brand 2019.” Statista, 1 July 2020, www.statista.com/statistics/273057/value-
of-the-most-valuable-fast-food-brands-worldwide/. Accessed 21 Jan. 2020.

“McDonald's Vs. Burger King: A Closer Look At Two Burger Giants.” Nasdaq, 20
Sept. 2017, www.nasdaq.com/articles/mcdonalds-vs-burger-king-closer-look-
two-burger-giants-2017-09-20. Accessed 22 Sept. 2020.

Mulye, Prathamesh. “Why India's Petrol Prices Remain Flat despite Global Crude Oil
Crash.” Scroll.in, Scroll.in, 24 Apr. 2020, scroll.in/article/960046/why-indias-
petrol-prices-remain-flat-despite-global-crude-oil-crash. Accessed 5 Oct.
2020.

Rosmarin, Remi. "Sustainability Sells: Why Consumers and Clothing Brands Alike
Are Turning to Sustainability As a Guiding Light." Business Insider,
22 Apr. 2020, www.businessinsider.com/sustainability-as-a-value-is-changing-
how-consumers-shop. Accessed 22 Jan. 2020.

Thacker, Hency. “Understanding the Four Levels of CSR.” The CSR Journal, 15 Oct.
2020, thecsrjournal.in/understanding-the-four-levels-of-csr/. Accessed 7 Apr.
2020.

“VRIO Framework EXPLAINED with EXAMPLES: B2U.” Business, 26 July 2020,

www.business-to-you.com/vrio-from-firm-resources-to-competitive-
advantage/. Accessed 2 Mar. 2020.

31 | P a g e
6.4 News Articles / Web Pages

Altmin, Lauren. “By 2025, All of McDonald's Packaging to Come from Renewable,
Recycled or Certified Sources; Goal to Have Recycling Available in All
Restaurants.” McDonald's - Official Global Corporate Website,
corporate.mcdonalds.com/corpmcd/en-us/our-stories/article/ourstories.renewa
ble_packaging.html. Accessed 18 Jan 2020.

Alves, Glynda. “Majority Indians Now Purchase Items Based on Social

Responsibility, Inclusiveness and Environmental Impact.” The Economic
Times, Economic Times, 1 Aug. 2020,
economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/majority-indians-
purchasing-based-on-social-responsibility-inclusiveness-and-environmental-
impact/articleshow/77299600.cms. Accessed 13 Aug. 2020

Busby, Mattha. “Investors Urge KFC, McDonald's and Burger King to Cut
Emissions.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 29 Jan. 2019,
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mcdonalds-and-burger-king-to-cut-emissions. Accessed 14 Jan. 2020.

Business Insider India. “McDonald's CEO Was Just Fired over a Relationship with an
Employee. Here Are 18 Major Changes He Made during 4 Years at the Helm
of the Fast-Food Giant.” Business Insider, Business Insider India, 4 Nov.
2019, www.businessinsider.in/slideshows/miscellaneous/mcdonalds-ceo-was-
just-fired-over-a-relationship-with-an-employee-here-are-18-major-changes-
he-made-during-4-years-at-the-helm-of-the-fast-food-giant-/slidelist/
71913879.cms. Accessed 12 Jan. 2020.

“Burger King And Mumbai Indians Strengthen Their Partnership To Promote

Leadership Potential Among Young Girls.” CSRBOX, 16 May 2016,
csrbox.org/India_CSR_news_Burger-King-And-Mumbai-Indians-strengthen-
Their-Partnership-To-Promote-Leadership-Potential-Among-Young-Girls_302.
Accessed 1 Jun. 2020.

“Carroll's CSR Pyramid: Business.” tutor2u, 31 Oct. 2019,

www.tutor2u.net/business/reference/carrolls-csr-pyramid. Accessed 7 Apr.
2020.

Cholia, Ami. “McDonald's Is Using Grease from Its Food to Power Its Delivery
Trucks.” ZDNet, ZDNet, 5 July 2011, www.zdnet.com/article/mcdonalds-is-
using-grease-from-its-food-to-power-its-delivery-trucks/. Accessed 15 Feb.
2020.

Coombes, Rebecca. “McDonald's Profits Drop and Mars Abandons King Size Bars.”
BMJ (Clinical Research Ed.), BMJ Publishing Group Ltd., 9 Oct. 2004,
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32 | P a g e
CSR Mandate. “Burger King India Partners With Room To Read India.” CSR
Mandate, 1 June 2017, www.csrmandate.org/burger-king-india-partners-with-
room-to-read-india/. Accessed 1 Jun. 2020

“Codes of Conduct.” McDonald's, corporate.mcdonalds.com/corpmcd/investors-

relations/codes-of-conduct.html. Accessed 9 Apr. 2020.

Dan, Avi. “Burger King's New Weird Whopper Ad, Featuring Farting Cows.” Forbes,
Forbes Magazine, 21 July 2020,
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Frazee, Gretchen. “4 Reasons It's Hard to Become a Sustainable Business.” PBS,

Public Broadcasting Service, 23 Sept. 2019,
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Frangoul, Anmar. "McDonald’s Restaurants in India Are Using Cooking Oil to Power
Delivery Trucks." CNBC, 24 July 2018,
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cooking-oil-to-power-deliver.html. Accessed 25 Jan. 2020.

Goodera. “CSR And Sustainable Development: Do Indian Companies Care About

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Imchen, Atula. “Burger King India and Project Mumbai Salute Frontline Healthcare
Workers.” CSR Mandate, 13 May 2020, www.csrmandate.org/burger-king-
india-and-project-mumbai-salute-frontline-healthcare-workers/. Accessed 1
Jun. 2020.

Majaski, Christina. “McDonald's vs. Burger King: What's the Difference?”

Investopedia, Investopedia, 14 Jan. 2020,
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comparing-business-models.asp. Accessed 20. Mar. 2020.

Martins, Andrew. “Your Customers Prefer Sustainable Products.” Business News

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Maze, Jonathan. “There Is No Room for Any More Restaurants.” Restaurant

Business, Restaurant Business, 23 Oct. 2018,
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“McDonald’s Entry to India.” Assignment Point,

www.assignmentpoint.com/business/mcdonalds-entry-to-india.html. Accessed
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33 | P a g e
“McDonald's – Ethical Practice.” rmtheory2practice, 20 Oct. 2014,
rmtheory2practice.wordpress.com/2014/10/20/mcdonalds-ethical-practice/.
Accessed 9 Apr. 2020.

“McDonald's Aims for Fully Recycled Packaging by 2025.” BBC News, BBC, 16 Jan.
2018, www.bbc.com/news/business-42704291. Accessed 28 Mar. 2020.

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6.5 Video(s)

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Mar. 2020.

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