McDonald's breakfast menu is the perfect remedy when you are trying to beat the rush to get to work. It's quick, easy to eat, and — most importantly — delicious. It's the jolt you need in the morning, but it's so good you just want more.
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00In October 2015, McDonald's debuted the all-day breakfast menu, and people everywhere rejoiced
00:07at the idea of eating cheap and delicious breakfast food around the clock.
00:12But all-day breakfast is just the latest innovation in Mickey D's long and checkered food history.
00:17Here's a look at some things you didn't know about McDonald's breakfast.
00:21Behold the Egg McMuffin
00:23Back in the day, not only did McDonald's not serve breakfast all day, they actually didn't
00:27serve breakfast at all.
00:29It wasn't until 1970 that franchisee Jim Delegate, who also invented the Big Mac, came
00:35up with the idea of serving breakfast at the McDonald's he owned and operated.
00:39But it didn't become a national phenomenon until 1971, when fellow franchise owner Herb
00:45Peterson fed McDonald's head honcho Ray Kroc an innovation the world now knows as the Egg
00:50McMuffin.
00:51Kroc loved it so much he brought it to the company's senior management, and by 1976,
00:56every McDonald's in the country had a full breakfast menu.
00:59I hereby proclaim breakfast at participating McDonald's every weekend!
01:06Haters gonna hate
01:07It's so frustrating.
01:10You race to McDonald's, glance at Mickey, and oh no, it's 10-33.
01:14You're three minutes late.
01:16No breakfast for you.
01:18Luckily, those days are gone now.
01:20But while fans of hash browns may love all-day breakfast, not everyone at McDonald's is actually
01:25lovin' it.
01:26Some franchises had to invest a lot of money in order to make their restaurants capable
01:30of serving breakfast alongside the standard menu items.
01:34Others felt like they were rushed into service and wanted more time to introduce the new
01:38menu.
01:39And some were concerned about menu items that all-day breakfast pushed off the menu, like
01:43some McWraps.
01:44Though all-day breakfast proved to be a massive hit initially, by 2017 it was reported that
01:50sales were slumping once again.
01:52So was the convenience of all-day breakfast worth all the effort?
01:55Only your mouth knows the answer.
01:57They're invested in the coffee game
01:59By 2006, McDonald's was one of the dominant forces in the breakfast market, selling one
02:04out of every 10 cups of coffee in the United States to the tune of $19 billion a year.
02:10But with upscale coffee shops like Starbucks cutting into their action, McDonald's was
02:14forced to up their game.
02:16In 2009, they introduced the McCafe line of drinks, which offer cheaper and faster alternatives
02:21to Starbucks coffee and lattes.
02:24And they haven't stopped yet.
02:25By 2020, 100 percent of their coffee will come from sustainable sources.
02:30There are healthy breakfast options
02:33You don't need a degree in nutrition to realize some of the breakfast options at McDonald's
02:37can be kind of unhealthy.
02:39The Big Breakfast with hot cakes, for instance, contains your entire daily recommended fat
02:43intake in just one meal, plus more than half of your recommended daily allowance of sodium.
02:49But there are a few healthier options if you know where to look.
02:52The Egg McMuffin, for instance, clocks in at 300 calories, 12 grams of fat, and 730
02:58milligrams of sodium.
03:00And while that's a bit high on fat and sodium, you do get 18 grams of protein.
03:04Still, the healthier option is the Egg White Delight McMuffin, which has 260 calories,
03:098 grams of fat, and 730 milligrams of sodium.
03:14And it only has 2 grams less protein than the regular McMuffin.
03:18More humane food
03:20One of the most central ingredients on the McDonald's breakfast menu is eggs.
03:24How central?
03:25McDonald's actually uses more than 4 percent of all the eggs produced in the United States,
03:31and they're committed to making sure those eggs are gathered in the most humane way possible,
03:35as they've committed to going completely cage-free in their North American restaurants by 2025.
03:40That decision may have been influenced by the Great Pork Scandal of 2011, when their
03:45pork supplier, Smithfield, was accused by the Humane Society of lying to shareholders
03:50about their animal welfare practices.
03:52It turned out that the company used gestation cages, meaning their sows lived in a place
03:57so small that during their entire lifetime they couldn't even turn around.
04:01In response, McDonald's pledged that by 2022, all of its U.S. pork suppliers would phase
04:07out the use of these inhumane crates.
04:09The options are very different abroad
04:11If you've ever traveled outside of the United States, you've surely noticed some of the
04:15variations in the McDonald's breakfast menu, depending on where you go.
04:19For example, if you're traveling in the Middle East, you're not going to find the pork on
04:23the menu at all, because it's forbidden in Islam.
04:26And that's just one regional variation.
04:29Depending on where you are, you can also order a Georgie Pie, Stroop Waffles, a Halloumi
04:34Muffin, or a Brekkie Wrap, among many others.
04:37So before you order a McDonald's breakfast overseas, make sure you actually know what
04:41you're getting.
04:42Happy breakfast
04:44Everybody loves Happy Meals, so why don't they have a breakfast Happy Meal?
04:48Well, it turns out they do.
04:50Back in 2016, McDonald's rolled out a pilot program in the Tulsa, Oklahoma area, testing
04:56a breakfast Happy Meal in 73 locations.
04:59There were two basic options, one centering on McGriddles, and the other on Egg McMuffins.
05:04So far, Mickey D's hasn't rolled out the breakfast Happy Meal to the rest of the country, but
05:09here's hoping.
05:10After all, everyone wants their food to come with a prize.
05:13It all comes in a Happy Meal box, with games, puzzles, jokes, and a prize!
05:17A prize?