Fast food restaurant chain McDonald's is the company that distributes the most toys worldwide, at an estimated 1.5 billion toys globally. McDonald's began selling kids’ “Happy Meals” in 1979 and as of 2014, approximately 20% of all of McDonald’s sales include a kids’ meal that comes with a toy. In 1997, McDonald's set records with its toys, when it included “Teenie Beanie Babies” with their kids’ meals and sold four meals for every child in the US. Critics of the fast food chain claim the inclusion of toys with kids’ meals encourages unhealthy eating habits as the meals are often high in sodium and fat, and don’t include fruits or vegetables. In 2011, San Francisco banned “Happy Meals” from being marketed to children and being sold with toys.
More about McDonald's:
- Over 62 million customers eat at McDonald's each day on average—this number is larger than the population of Great Britain.
- Queen Elizabeth II of England owns a McDonald's located near Buckingham Palace.
- McDonald's is the company that is the largest purchaser of eggs in the US.
