McDonald’s ‘green’ flagship store revealed in Victoria

Sarah Stowe

The first McDonald’s ‘green’ flagship store has opened in Melton, Victoria, with franchisee Ben Westover at the helm.

Ben and his team will be the first to trial, evaluate and implement a series of sustainability initiatives before successful schemes are rolled out across the other 999 stores in Australia.

The South Melton outlet, which is also the country’s 1000th store to open, will operate purely on renewable energy generated on-site using a solar system.

McDonald's green flagship store unveiled in Victoria | Inside Franchise Business
McDonald’s green flagship store unveiled in Victoria | Inside Franchise Business

A list of 25 measures to be introduced include using recycled materials used in furniture and in the play areas, the recycling of Happy Meal toys, and initiating a front-of-house recycling system that will turn waste into packaging materials.

The sustainability initiatives aren’t all about recycling though. Green-minded customers will be able to charge electric vehicles at the store too.

The business will also buy carbon credits to offset deliveries made via UberEats and DoorDash.

Diana Grosmann, the national director of development at McDonald’s Australia said “The opening of our 1000th restaurant is a significant achievement for Macca’s, and we are proud to be continuing to find new and innovative ways to help make a positive difference to the communities we operate in.

“As a sustainability innovation hub, [this restaurant] will play a crucial role in enabling us to continue to design and build commercially practical sustainability solutions in to every new Macca’s restaurant in the years to come.

“Over the coming three years we plan to invest more than $500 million to open over 80 new restaurants across Australia, incorporating  a range of core sustainability elements from restaurant 1000, including PlayPlaces made with recycled content and energy efficient equipment, as well as the use of 100 per cent renewable energy at some restaurants.”