Furor Over French Fries for McDonald’s in Venezuela

Furor Over French Fries for McDonald’s in Venezuela
A Quarter Pounder meal is served with arepas or corn cakes at a local McDonald's, in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2015. McDonald’s franchises in Venezuela have run out of potatoes and are now serving South American alternatives like deep-fried arepas or yuca, a starchy tuberous root. The franchisers are blaming a contract dispute with West Coast dock workers for halting the export of frozen fries to the country. AP Photo/Fernando Llano
Updated:

CARACAS, Venezuela—McDonald’s is finding itself under fire in Venezuela both for not selling French fries — and for selling them.

Hours after the Associated Press reported that McDonald’s had run out of fries at Venezuelan franchises, state-sponsored television network Telesur posted a story headlined “McDonald’s Joins Economic War against Venezuela.”

The restaurant’s franchise operator had actually avoided blaming shortages on the government, saying a U.S. labor dispute was the reason.

Dante Rivas is the government official in charge of simplifying red tape. He said on Twitter the lack of imported French fries is good, praising the domestic fried yucca McDonald’s is selling instead.

Meanwhile, President Nicolas Maduro retweeted a story about a tooth being found in an order of McDonald’s French fries in Japan.

From The Associated Press

Hannah Dreier
Hannah Dreier
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