McDonald’s in Kazakhstan is ready to consider using domestic meat products at the fast food chains, said General Director of Food Solutions KZ Aset Mashanov in a meeting with state authorities and the meat and poultry union representatives held on December 9, QazMonitor reports citing the ministry of trade and integration.
Following the temporary shutdown of McDonald’s restaurants due to a supply shortage in mid-November, the Technical Regulation and Metrology Committee and the fast food company have been in talks to find solutions to resume operations.
Mashanov said the company plans to continue operations in our country and is working to restore the restaurants.
He addressed a number of challenges that need the involvement of government agencies to speed up the process of resuming operations.
By the end of this year, cargo will arrive from abroad. The process of customs clearance, according to experience, unfortunately, often takes a long time – up to one working week. We ask for support in speeding up the customs clearance process as much as possible
Representatives of the State Revenue Committee said that they were ready to assist if there are permissive documents from the authorized bodies, such as phytosanitary certificates and certificates of conformity.
The question of import substitution was also raised during the meeting. Representatives of the "Meat Union of Kazakhstan", "Union of Poultry Farmers of Kazakhstan'', and "Dairy Union of Kazakhstan" and others offered their products to McDonald's in Kazakhstan.
Why not use Kazakh meat? The quality is no less than others. And in terms of safety, of course, it is better to opt for our products
In his response, Mashanov said that they are ready to use domestic products and have already begun negotiations with Kazakh producers of poultry and beef. All products must comply with the high quality standards of McDonald's, he added.
The meeting concluded with the preparation of a roadmap and the appointment of supervisors to tackle specific issues for further discussion.