Tomatoes go into burgers like salt to french fries – right?
But in one country this is gradually coming to an end: McDonald’s, Subway, and now Burger King are removing tomatoes from their recipes in India.
Reason: Tomatoes are too expensive in India!
Burger King tries to deliver bad news to its customers with irony: “Tomatoes need holidays too!” read a sign at a branch in the capital New Delhi on Thursday.
The quality and supply of tomatoes is currently unpredictable, says Burger King. That’s why the chain “can’t add tomatoes to our plates.” But Burger King is doing its best “to put the tomato back in the burger.”
In general, Indians are complaining because of the sharp increase in fruit prices in the country. In addition to generally high inflation, this time there was also a bad harvest.
Fast food competitor McDonald’s canceled tomatoes in July – a temporary measure for seasonal reasons, it said. Subway followed suit a little later, citing “quality issues” as the reason.
The ending of the tomato hasn’t changed much in terms of the “authentic” Indian burger: No beef burgers are offered in India, after all, as cows and bovine are sacred to Hindus and their consumption is taboo. . At McDonald’s and Burger King there are main options with chicken substitutes or vegan – also with “Whopper” from Burger King or “Quarter Pounder” from McDonald’s.
India’s central bank also issued a statement regarding tomatoes last week. Fruit prices have soared due to bad weather and disease outbreaks in key areas of the country, he said.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the government had lifted restrictions on tomato imports from neighboring Nepal.
