The McRib Exists Because Another McDonald's Menu Item Was Way Too Popular

It has long been rumored that McDonald's only brings back its elusive McRib when market prices for pork drop significantly. While this has never been confirmed by the company, we do know that the origins of the iconic sandwich are linked to supply and demand for meat — but not pork. Chicken was the driving force behind the McRib, as the popularity of McDonald's famous McNuggets led to the sandwich's release.

The McRib and chicken McNuggets were invented by the same man: René Arend, McDonald's first executive chef. The nuggets were developed and first sold in 1979, and joined the chain's national menu in 1983. The dish was outrageously popular as soon as it hit restaurants — even according to today's customers, McNuggets tasted the best in the '80s, which likely fueled their success. With so many McDonald's franchises vying to sell McNuggets, the chain wound up with a major chicken shortage. 

To give those eager McDonald's franchisees a new menu item that did not use chicken, Arend proposed the pork-based McRib. Though the McRib's rack-shaped patty is formed by pressing ground pork into one piece, Arend was inspired by real-deal South Carolina barbecue-style pulled pork sandwiches. The McRib was definitely brought in as a direct response to the McNugget situation, but the Washington Post implies that Arend's sandwich was pre-existing. Either way, the McRib first went up for sale in 1981, though it sadly didn't find McNugget levels of success.

Though some sources imply that the McRib was never a hit during its initial run, it was actually quite successful in regional test markets. McDonald's grew into a massive global pork retailer due to the sandwich's popularity (via the Washington Post). However, once the McRib transitioned into a nationwide offering in 1982, it didn't perform very well. The sandwich was finally pulled from McDonald's menus in 1985 – but of course, we know that this wasn't the end of the McRib.

The McRib's first run in the '80s showed that it couldn't be a national bestseller, but it did have enough popularity to succeed in smaller, limited releases. This might have inspired its current sales cycle, in which it disappears and reappears on menus periodically (and not every McDonald's sells it when it does come back). The McRib's first miraculous return occurred in 1989, and it has been going and coming back ever since.

While McDonald's once stated that consumer demand plays a role in when and why the McRib comes and goes, the company hasn't explained its rationale beyond that. McDonald's customers and employees alike speculate that the back-and-forth is meant to make the McRib more popular than it would be as a permanent national offering. Limited availability often leads to higher demand, and the Golden Arches clearly knows that this scarcity is half of the McRib's appeal. Ultimately, the marketing move has helped the McRib become more talked about than ever.