Antibiotic-free chicken step up for McDonald's: Your Say

Letter edited for clarity and grammar

In Paste BN's article "Pressure's on for new McDonald's CEO," an analyst says Chick-fil-A is "fast food done right" (Money, March 2). A key to that success has been Chick-fil-A's pledge a year ago to transition to selling chicken raised without antibiotics in a few years. Now, McDonald's has made a similar decision not to use chickens treated with antibiotics often used for humans.

Many Americans are concerned about antibiotic resistance and issues involving industrial agriculture. Such consumer awareness has caused tastes to shift to more sustainable fast-food options. To magnify the positive effects of this change, McDonald's should also commit to selling beef raised without antibiotics.

Kevin Mathieu; Washington, D.C.

Facebook comments edited for clarity and grammar

I applaud McDonald's moves against antibiotics, but I'd applaud even more if it would improve food quality. The taste and texture of its burgers, chicken and french fries have fallen behind Wendy's, Chick-fil-A and Five Guys.

In 1970, I worked in fast food. I put real potatoes through an automatic peeler, chopped them, and washed them twice to remove a lot of starch, which made excellent fries. Today's frozen fries are not anywhere close to the same quality.

—Mickey Cashen

OK, so McDonald's says no antibiotics. Is it organic? I doubt it. My household will still not be doing fast food at McDonald's.

—Ronald Sawtelle

McDonald's has good breakfast foods, and its $1 hamburgers are decent. Just be sure to use a few napkins to soak the grease off the patty sausage.

—Joe Lent