McDonald\u2019s launched its new burger earlier this summer at all of its 205 Portugal restaurants, which includes two beef patties \u201cperfectly layered with melting cheese, crispy toppings, and a tangy McDonald\u2019s sauce,\u201d Chris Kempczinski, chairman and CEO of McDonald\u2019s, said during the fast-food giant\u2019s earnings call<\/a> Monday.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Big Arch is a whopping 1,065 calories, according to the menu listing<\/a>. Adult women typically require just 1,600 to 2,400 calories per day, according to the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans<\/a>, while adult men require about 2,200 to 3,000 calories. That means the burger could take up more than two-thirds of one\u2019s daily caloric intake\u2014and that\u2019s before adding fries and a drink to wash it down.<\/p>\n Courtesy McDonald\u2019s<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cOur team of chefs from around the world have created a more satiating burger to meet customer demand and to deliver on our ongoing commitment to menu innovation,\u201d a McDonald\u2019s spokesperson said in a statement to Fortune<\/em>. \u201cWe\u2019ll be testing this burger in a few markets this year, ensuring that it has universal appeal.\u201d<\/p>\n McDonald\u2019s is piloting the new menu item across three international markets this year but won\u2019t scale more broadly internationally until they \u201clearn through the end of the year to gather learnings,\u201d Kempczinski said. The Big Arch is being tested in Portugal, Canada, and Germany starting this summer. Kempczinski had hinted about a bigger burger hitting McDonald\u2019s stores back in a December 2023 interview with CNN<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIn the US, in a number of markets, around the world, having a larger burger is an opportunity,\u201d Kempczinski told CNN<\/em>. \u201cWe\u2019re working on that. That is something that you should expect in the future.\u201d McDonald\u2019s has yet to say when or whether they\u2019d launch the burger in the U.S.<\/p>\n The goal in launching the Big Arch is to \u201caddress unmet customer needs with a more satiating burger that will provide great value for money,\u201d Kempczinski said during the earnings call. The Big Arch undoubtedly does that since it contains 36% more calories than the Double Big Mac and has more calories than anything else on the McDonald\u2019s menu.\u00a0<\/p>\n In terms of providing \u201cgreat value for money,\u201d that\u2019s somewhat hard to tell, considering McDonald\u2019s franchises select their own prices, which can vary by restaurant and market. One McDonald\u2019s restaurant in Lisbon has the Big Arch listed for $9.70<\/a> with fries and a drink in an Uber<\/a> Eats listing, but often food-delivery apps upcharge menu items at participating restaurants.<\/p>\n Looking beyond the calories, the Big Arch also contains 67 grams of fat, which is 96% of the recommended daily fat intake for adults, Melissa Boufounos, sports nutritionist and owner of MB Performance Nutrition in Canada, told Fortune<\/em>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAs a sports nutritionist, I\u2019m big on people eating an optimal amount of protein. With two beef patties, the Big Arch provides a whopping 57 grams of protein,\u201d Boufounos said. \u201cBut that doesn\u2019t mean I recommend rushing out to order one. There\u2019s truly no need for a menu item to serve up 1,065 calories.\u201d<\/p>\n Even more so than the calories, the fat content of the menu item is \u201cworrisome\u201d to Boufounos.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cEating too much highly processed and fatty animal-based protein can contribute to high cholesterol, heart disease, and other chronic health conditions,\u201d she said. \u201cHeart disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S., with someone suffering from a heart attack every 40 seconds. To me, this burger is a step in the wrong direction.\u201d<\/p>\n However, Kempczinski insists it\u2019s a \u201cquintessential McDonald\u2019s burger with a twist on our iconic familiar flavors.\u201d<\/p>\n The announcement of the Big Arch also comes at the heels of McDonald\u2019s $5 value meal<\/a> it announced in late June, but that promotion lasted only a month. The company offered four menu items: a McChicken or McDouble burger, four chicken nuggets, fries, and a drink for just $5\u2014a deal that delivered on another promise made by Kempczinski, who said the company would increase the number of its cost-effective menu options after poor earnings results in the fourth quarter of 2023.<\/p>\n McDonald\u2019s missed its second-quarter 2024 results, too. For the quarter, which ended on June 30, McDonald\u2019s reported $6.49 billion in revenue, a 2% increase from last year, but less than Wall Street estimates across revenue, earnings, and same-store sales.<\/p>\n \u201cConsumers are more discriminating with their spend,\u201d Kempczinski said during the earnings call. In addition to the launch of the Big Arch, McDonald\u2019s is also focused on \u201caccelerating strategic growth drivers like chicken and loyalty,\u201d he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/img-assets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Screenshot-2024-07-30-at-3.51.09PM-e1722371670842.jpg?w=1440&q=75\"\/)
Is bigger really better?<\/h2>\n