Question

McDonald's has changed their paper food wrapping colors to white and blue in support of Israel.

Comments

This statement is false.

According to USA Today, the wrapping has been used many times before the war and is mainly used during shortages for special items. I understand why this might be confusing, especially now with what's going on. McDonald's made it clear they have different versions of it and it wasn't meant to be political in any way.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2023/10/30/false-claim-mcdonalds-changed-wrappers-to-support-israel-fact-check/71349660007/

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This claim seems to be misleading. Although blue and white are the colors of the Israeli flag, according to politifact.com, the food wrapping colors are most likely blue and white since those were the colors of the wrapping when the big mac came out.

Answer 1

This is false.

Reuters found that the blue-and-white wrapper is "an example of a generic wrapper used for temporary shortages, special orders, and limited-edition products." McDonald's also told Reuters that "generic wrappers come in a variety of colors including blue, green, purple, and yellow, and none are intended to make any political statement."

https://www.reuters.com/fact-check/white-blue-mcdonalds-wrappers-predate-oct-2023-israel-hamas-war-2023-10-26/

Both USA Today and PolitiFact found the same based on the same statements used in the Reuters article.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2023/10/30/false-claim-mcdonalds-changed-wrappers-to-support-israel-fact-check/71349660007/

https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2023/oct/27/viral-image/mcdonalds-didnt-introduce-blue-and-white-food-wrap/

The PolitiFact article also includes a link to a 2016 Reddit post showing a blue-and-white wrapper. 

https://www.reddit.com/r/mildlyinteresting/comments/5c9cfi/mcdonalds_breakfast_wrappers_have_the_corner/

A photo of a blue-and-white McDonald's wrapper was also uploaded to Wikipedia Commons in 2012. 

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:McDonalds_wrapping_paper_with_various_languages,_Bucharest,_Romania.JPG

Comments

This is awesome. Your use of many different sources makes it obvious that this claim is false. Great job.

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This is a really nice fact check! I like how you incorporated many different sources to state that this claim is false.

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great job on analyzing so many resources to prove that this statement is wrong

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Should McDonald's avoid using blue/white wrappers since some customers think that the fast food chain is taking sides?

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This is a great fact check. It uses so many good sources to show that the claim is false.

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great work with providing links and various other sources that support your fact-checking and the clarification of the use of blue and white wrappers

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@zenyogi I'd argue no. Blue and white are generic colors that could mean a plethora of things, just like any other set of two generic colors. When I see blue and white, I think of my the colors of my middle school, the Culver's chain, or Greece. The probability of coincidence of multiple ideas having the same set of two colors is pretty much always 100%.

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Good with the providing evidence from other sources and stating how the claim is false and how the evidences prove that this claim is incorrect.

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I don't think I've seen this amount of sources ever in a fact check. Great job!

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I think you did an excellent job fact-checking this claim. You cited why exactly the claim was wrong and provided several other articles/ resources to further prove your claim. Overall, fantastic job.

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The use of sources, especially a credited source such as Reuters backs up your claim with solid evidence.

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Yes, this is a true statement because I myself have been to McDonald's a few time within the past few months and have noticed that their wrapping paper for food has stayed the same red and yellow for burgers.

USA Today: They come to conclusion that although a lady had supposedly thought that McDonald's had changed their wrapping paper the conclusion is still false. It was only because it was for a special order and McDonald's had been using this paper since before the war.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2023/10/30/false-claim-mcdonalds-changed-wrappers-to-support-israel-fact-check/71349660007/

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Yes, it was a shortage of McDonald's wrapping paper that led to this packaging, and the use of this wrapping paper predates the Israeli war, so McDonald's doesn't take any outward stance.

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I think you did a great job with this fact check. You went into very great detail, added the sources you used as evidence, and explained everything perfectly.

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I applaud the list of different websites you used as your sources to really comb through all the information that could possibly say differently. Even if sites may say the same thing, I think it was great that you used multiple sources to further establish the fact-checking and falsity of the claim.

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I really appreciate your response. As a reader it is very helpful to read an answer that is short and to the point. All of your sources make your answer easy to follow as well.

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Using multiple sources to prove a point is very well done. Doing so makes you sound trustworthy and leaves no doubt. I really like how deep you dove in to the case and provided links from a wide range of sources. The explanation of the common use of different colors provided a lot of clarity. Great work!

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You did great work on this response. It is very thorough and thought out with a generous amount of sources. It was very straight to the point.

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I think this fact-check helps to support that the claim is false. There is clear evidence from a credible source provided. As well as there are more links to support that the reason for the blue and white wrapping was due to a shortage.

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Very good fact check. I like the use of many different sources to prove this claim to be false. It is good to be thorough and you did that very well.

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This is the best fact check I have read yet on this website. Many articles and reasoning behind why it is false.

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I think this is a really good fact check. You listed lots of sources and made good points that show that the claim is false, good job.

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I like how you went straight to the point. Great job including a lot of sources as well.

Answer 2

This claim is false. First of all, these colors are nothing new for McDonald's wrapping. According to PolitiFact, these generic wrappers have been used for years and come in a variety of colors for special orders, limited-edition products, and supply shortages. Therefore, these wrappers are not a political statement from McDonald's.

https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2023/oct/27/viral-image/mcdonalds-didnt-introduce-blue-and-white-food-wrap/

Comments

Good job getting right to the point and proving that the claim is false.

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This statement is true and it is said in many different articles debunking the false claim because of the very proof that these straw wrappers have been around before.

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This fact-check, in my opinion, lends credence to the assertion falsity. There is unambiguous proof from a reliable source given. There are other linkages to bolster the theory that there was a shortage, which is why the packaging was blue and white.

Answer 3

This claim is wrong.  According to the U.S. News, the blue and white colored wrapper does not represent any political statement. The spokesperson also claims that this type of wrapper has been used for years, and is only used when they are out of regular wrappers. According to McDonald’s, they use a variety of colors as limited-edition or for special orders, but blue and white wrapper does not represent political statements in the Israel-Hamas war. 

False claim McDonald's changed wrappers to support Israel | Fact check (usatoday.com)

Comments

I really this fact check! I really liked how you explained the actual reason for the colors of these wrappers and gave us a good analysis. Great work providing us the evidence and including a strong source.

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I like how you explained what the spokesperson claimed and how and why it doesn't represent anything political with facts.

Answer 4

This is false. According to USA Today, the blue and white wrapper was used long before the war going on between Israel and Hamas. They are used for special addition products or if there is a shortage of normal wrappers.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2023/10/30/false-claim-mcdonalds-changed-wrappers-to-support-israel-fact-check/71349660007/

Comments

Good job on your fact-checking. It's very straight to the point while still giving the necessary facts. One thing that might help the validity is adding another source.

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I appreciate this fact check. The explanation behind the colors of the wrappers was enlightening, and your analysis was well done. Good job in presenting the evidence and citing a reputable source.

Answer 5

This claim is incorrect as it seems to be used as a substitute for the main wrappers used as they have had a shortage.

According to usatoday, “The wrapper shown in the video is one of several similar designs used for special orders, limited-edition products or temporary shortages of standard wrappers, McDonald’s said. The blue and white wrappers have been in use since well before the Israel-Hamas war.”

So to prove this as false as this type of pattern of color and wrapper were made before the war and just limited until then.

Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2023/10/30/false-claim-mcdonalds-changed-wrappers-to-support-israel-fact-check/71349660007/

Comments

This claim is very good. Straight to the point and provides great evidence on the claims falsehood.

Answer 6

This statement is false. First of all social media like Instagram is an outlet where fake news can easily be posted and shared. While doing my research I found that the blue wrapping means either limited edition items or temporary shortages of their standard wrapping paper. I found that this blue paper was used before the Israel-Hamas war and is not being used in any sort of political statement.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2023/10/30/false-claim-mcdonalds-changed-wrappers-to-support-israel-fact-check/71349660007/

Comments

I think this is a great fact-check. It is important to make it clear at first that things you see on Instagram are not credible and can't be trusted at first glance. Good job then using a credible source like USA Today to back up your claim of the statement being false.

Answer 7

This video is an example of misinformation; the person who posted the video and the person who took the video both believe the fact that McDonald's had changed their wrapping just two weeks from receiving the meal to support Israel amidst the Israel-Hamas war, yet what these two don't know is that this white and blue version of the wrapping is a past, older generational design of the newer wrapping that comes in multiple colors and is used when there is a shortage of the newer wrappers. The type of wrapping given to this customer is well recognized and the information was misconstrued and misleading. USA Weekly covered this false claim with evidentiary support from emails transcribed on October 27th, 2023 with McDonald's: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2023/10/30/false-claim-mcdonalds-changed-wrappers-to-support-israel-fact-check/71349660007/  

Answer 8

The claim that McDonald's has changed their wrapping to white and blue in support of Israel is false. Multiple employees and spokespeople from McDonald's have claimed that the wrappers are unrelated to Israel, according to (PolitiFact | McDonald’s didn’t introduce blue-and-white food wrappers to support Israel, company says). They have been used for years, dating back at least as far as 2016, where there is a reddit post featuring the blue and white wrappers. 

Answer 9

This claim is false. USA Today fact-checks this rumor going around and confirms that the certain blue and white wrapping paper is usually meant for extra's when they have shortages in supplies or special orders. A lady who thought it was of support of Israel during the war only claimed that as her assumption, when these paper straw wrapping has been used before the war began.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2023/10/30/false-claim-mcdonalds-changed-wrappers-to-support-israel-fact-check/71349660007/

Answer 10

This statement is false. It originated from an Instagram post about the colors looking like they support Israel. The fact of the matter is that this was a wrapping that's always been around, it's used when the usual ones are running out. Mcdonald's also said that many different colors can be used and they don't have any connection to politics.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2023/10/30/false-claim-mcdonalds-changed-wrappers-to-support-israel-fact-check/71349660007/https://www.reuters.com/fact-check/white-blue-mcdonalds-wrappers-predate-oct-2023-israel-hamas-war-2023-10-26/