A report is circling the internet that Jamie Oliver has won a legal battle against McDonald’s over its burgers in 2023 – but it’s not true.
The post is circling on Facebook this week but actually relates to a campaign the celebrity chef launched against the fast food chain in 2011.
Jamie Oliver vs McDonald’s post
“McDonald’s is losing the legal battle with chef Jamie Oliver, who proved the food they sell is not fit to be consumed because it is highly toxic,” the post says.
“Chef Jamie Oliver has won the battle against the world’s largest junk food chain. Oliver demonstrates how burgers are made,” it continues.
The post has been shared numerous times and says the fat parts of the meat are washed with hydrogen ammonia before the burger is made.
It claims the British chef said the meat is “not suitable for human consumption” and adds: “Please STOP feeding your children these fake foods because now you know.”
The 2023 legal battle is fake
However, Jamie Oliver is not involved in a legal battle with McDonald’s in 2023 and the lawsuit claims are entirely false.
The copypasta post has been circling social media since 2018 and fact checker Snopes debunked it more than five years ago.
They said the clickbait posts are attempting to “exploit a settled, years-old controversy surrounding McDonald’s use of a product called ammoniated beef”.
The claims made in the viral post are partially true but relate to a campaign in 2011 not a legal battle in 2023.
Jamie Oliver’s 2011 campaign
Over a decade ago, the restauranteur persuaded the fast food giant to change its burger recipe – but there was no lawsuit.
Oliver was disgusted to find that ammonium hydroxide was being used to convert fatty beef offcuts into a beef filler for burgers in the USA.
He announced this on his TV show Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution and said: “We’re taking a product that would be sold at the cheapest form for dogs and after this process we can give it to humans.”
The chef showed viewers the raw ‘pink slime’ which was produced in the ammonium hydroxide burger making process.
After months of campaigning, McDonald’s agreed to change the process and confirmed this in a 2013 statement.
“McDonald’s does not use lean beef trimmings treated with ammonia, what some individuals call “pink slime,” in our burgers, and hasn’t since 2011.,” they sad.
“Burgers are at the heart of the Golden Arches, and the fact is, McDonald’s USA serves only 100% USDA-inspected beef — no preservatives, no fillers, no extenders — period.”
“Prior to 2011, to assist with supply, McDonald’s USA, like many other food retailers, used this safe product but it is no longer part of our supply.”
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