Tomatoes continue to be a bane for the food industry in India. After McDonalds, another major fast food chain and arch rival Burger King also temporarily removed tomatoes from its burgers and wraps across multiple Indian outlets due to the recent surge in tomato prices.
The fast food chain announced this move with a humorous take. “Even tomatoes need a vacation … we cannot add tomatoes to our food,” said the notice posted at a few Burger King outlets in India.
The brand however has cited quality issues for removing tomatoes from its menu.
A support page of Burger King India’s website shared that the Indian franchisee follows “very high standards of quality,” and tomatoes will return soon. It added, “We request your patience and understanding.”
Burger King, one of the largest fast-food chains in India with over 400 locations, has joined McDonald’s and Subway in removing tomatoes off their menus as food inflation in India this week reached its worst level since January 2020.
The tomato supply shortage and the monsoon rains, which interrupted agricultural supply systems, drove prices up by as much as 450 per cent to record highs. But now that the rains have stopped, the supply system is slowly beginning to revive.
Earlier, a spokesperson for McDonald’s India-North and East stated that the fast food restaurant business is “constrained to serve tomatoes” in its menu items because of “seasonal issues” in the purchase of the ingredients.
