What Kind Of Bacon Does McDonald's Use, And Where Does The Chain Get It?

For many customers, bacon is a vital part of the McDonald's menu experience, boosting the flavor profile of items across the fast food chain's breakfast and burger offerings. However, what's less commonly known is exactly what type of bacon it is, and where it comes from. In the United States, McDonald's uses applewood smoked bacon. The chain relies on localized global sourcing, meaning that ingredients are sourced closer to its locations (when possible), rather than from one centralized spot worldwide. McDonald's has two major national meat suppliers in the U.S., Lopez Foods and Keystone Foods, but it's not clear if one of these companies is responsible for providing bacon. 

As its name suggests, applewood smoked bacon has been smoked using applewood. It's the second most popular bacon type with Tasting Table readers, only losing out on the top spot to hickory smoked bacon. Applewood imparts a slightly fruity and sweet flavor, making it one of the bacon types that's really worth knowing about. Smoking helps to dry and preserve meat, as well as to give it an added layer of smoky flavor. The reduced moisture from smoking the bacon also helps it crisp up when cooked, giving an important textural crunch component to everything from McDonald's Bacon, Egg & Cheese Bagel to its Bacon Quarter Pounder with Cheese.

There are plenty of examples of McDonald's bacon being locally sourced in other countries. In Italy, for example, the strips used for its Gran Crispy McBacon are supplied by Italian producers, while in the United Kingdom, bacon and all other pork products on the menu come from RSPCA-assured British farms. In Ireland, McDonald's bacon is sourced from a family-owned business in County Tipperary called Dew Valley Foods. McDonald's in Australia operates slightly differently, with bacon being supplied by a company called Don KRC that sources its strips nationally and from Canada.

However, not all McDonald's locations serve applewood smoked bacon — or even any bacon! There are kosher McDonald's restaurants in Israel and Argentina where you won't find pork anywhere on the menu, including bacon. While this might be a huge loss in some parts of the world, in these locations it reflects local religious practices and consumer preferences, with the strips being replaced by a range of other appropriate toppings. Similarly, you won't find bacon in McDonald's menu items in many Muslim-majority countries. There's also no beef or pork on McDonald's menus in India, given the diverse religious practises and cultural customs of its largely vegetarian population. 

In the U.S., applewood bacon remains a key weapon in the McDonald's flavor arsenal, and is commonly offered as an extra on burgers. Its smoky and sweet complexity is what elevates items like the Deluxe Bacon and Egg Biscuit, allowing it become the absolute best item on the McDonald's breakfast menu.