Happier Meal? McDonald’s nixing some unpalatable ingredients

NEW YORK – McDonald’s, which is trying to shake its image for serving processed junk food, said Monday it’s eliminating some unpalatable ingredients from its most popular menu items.

That includes making Chicken McNuggets and other items without artificial preservatives, and removing high-fructose corn syrup from its burger buns. The changes come as the world’s biggest burger chain fights to win back customers after three straight years of declining guest counts at its established U.S. locations.

A representative for McDonald’s, Becca Hary, did not immediately respond when asked which artificial preservatives are being removed.

For McDonald’s Corp., which has long courted families with its Happy Meals, convincing people it serves wholesome food is particularly important. The company had already signaled such changes were in store, telling investors during a presentation in late 2014 about how it was fixing its struggling business that it was evaluating its cooking procedures and ingredients.

“We need to think about our ingredient labels as being much smaller,” said Mike Andres, head of McDonald’s U.S., at the time.

Since then, the company has also said it is switching to butter from margarine for its Egg McMuffins, searing burgers longer, and changing its salad to include kale and spinach.