McDonald’s is opening an immersive pop-up butcher shop in Shoreditch to give customers a closer look at the sourcing and production behind its British and Irish beef burgers.

The company will open The Counter by McDonald’s from 17 to 19 September, transforming the London site into a traditional-style butcher shop featuring butcher’s blocks and cuts of beef used across its menu.

Visitors will be able to see whole cuts of forequarter and flank beef used to produce McDonald’s burger patties and meet farmers, producers and other businesses involved in its supply chain.

Representatives from Food Solutions, which produces beef patties for McDonald’s, will also be on hand to explain the production process.

The activation is designed to take customers through the journey from farm to finished burger, while addressing questions around how McDonald’s sources and makes its beef products.

McDonald’s says its burger patties are made using whole cuts of beef from farms across Britain and Ireland, with only salt and pepper added during cooking. The company works with more than 29,000 British and Irish farmers, all of which it says are approved under nationally recognised farm assurance schemes.

A limited number of masterclasses will also be available during the three-day event, allowing visitors to press their own burger patties, taste them after cooking and hear directly from those involved in McDonald’s farming and production network.

Participants will also be able to take home the patty they create alongside branded merchandise.

McDonald’s UK & Ireland vice president of supply chain Owen Jones said customers often asked what “secret ingredients” were used to create the taste of its burgers.

He said the business wanted the pop-up to highlight the simplicity of the product and “celebrate the farmers and producers behind our food”.

The restaurant group sources 100 per cent British and Irish beef for its burgers and also uses its Farm Forward programme to work with suppliers on areas including sustainability, animal welfare and the resilience of farming businesses.

McDonald’s says its beef can be traced through its supply chain, with whole cuts sourced from approved farms, abattoirs and processing facilities across Britain and Ireland.

The business has also invested in projects aimed at reducing the environmental impact of beef production, including research into cutting carbon emissions on UK and Irish farms.

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