Retail Express
McDonald’s China launches its first zero-carbon restaurant
2022-09-28
McDonald’s China has opened a drive-through restaurant McDonald’s Shougang Park in Beijing, its first Leed-certified zero-carbon restaurant in the country.
The fast-food chain said the new green flagship restaurant is designed and constructed per the Leed net-zero carbon and net-zero energy certification standards.
Spanning nearly 650sqm, the restaurant’s design follows the brand’s signature Project Ray design seen in its flagships, featuring the bright yellow staircase, and large open space to allow a generous amount of natural light.
McDonald’s Shougang Park’s 2000sqm on-site solar panels are expected to generate about 330,000 kWh annually, meeting the daily operating power needs of the restaurant and reducing carbon emissions by about 200 tons per year.
The Shougang Park store uses 100 per cent sustainable forest-certified base paper (FSC) packaging bags, straw-free drink cups and degradable plastic drink bags. The environmentally friendly charging parent-child bicycles from the brand’s ‘Reinventing Good Things” project are also installed inside the store.
“Shougang Garden Restaurant fully demonstrates McDonald’s ‘green development engine’, from a green restaurant, green supply chain, and green packaging to green recycling, providing customers with a full range of green experiences,” said Zhang Jiayin, CEO at McDonald’s China.
The company said the restaurant is expected to become the first restaurant in the catering industry to obtain dual Leed zero-carbon emission and zero-energy consumption certification in China and the Asia-Pacific region.
Marking the launch, McDonald’s will also roll out the ‘Go Green for the Future’ campaign across its 5000 locations in the country. A cup of complimentary Coca-Cola will be offered to customers who use the navigation software Amap and arrive at McDonald’s restaurants by bike or on foot as part of a series of green experience activities that McDonald’s China will provide to consumers nationwide to promote low-carbon lifestyles.
McDonald’s zero-carbon restaurant concept was first introduced in the UK last year as part of its broader commitment to the environment, aiming to make all 1400 of its restaurants and offices in the country net-zero by 2030.
