Arcos Dorados inaugurates McDonald's 100 restaurant in Chile in the Atacama Region

Amid growing global awareness of environmental impact, the culinary industry is undergoing a significant transformation toward sustainability.

More and more chains are adopting eco-conscious practices in an effort to reduce their environmental footprint and promote a greener, more sustainable future.

This trend towards environmentally friendly restaurants is being seen everywhere, from small cafes to large international fast food companies.

The motivation behind this change is clear: the need to address pressing environmental challenges, such as climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, Arcos Dorados is the company that controls McDonald's.

The quick service company is materializing, in 20 countries on the continent, its socio-environmental strategy called “Recipe of the Future”.

With this, it seeks to promote the sustainable evolution of restaurants, incorporating more and more inclusion and sustainability initiatives into them.

All through a model of “Sustainable Restaurants” that incorporate more than 20 green initiatives in their daily operations.

One of the main areas of focus for these McDonald's restaurants is waste management.

All of them implement reduction, reuse and recycling practices to minimize the amount of waste they generate.

This includes the elimination of single-use plastics, the recycling of oil for transformation into biodiesel, and the implementation of composting programs for organic waste.

In Chile, for example, disused employee uniforms are transformed into yarn to make warm clothing for communities.

In addition, Arcos Dorados was one of the first quick service companies that began to transform employees' masks, used in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, into new products such as trays.

Thanks to its alliance with the Technological Development Unit of the University of Concepción, one of the most important on the continent.

Typical dances from northern Chile were part of the joy of celebrating the new McDonald's. Arcos Dorados

Today, the chain opened a new store in the city of Copiapó (Atacama Region), built under this model of stores with an environmental focus.

A mission that Arcos Dorados has strongly promoted in Chile since 2021. As a novelty, it is the first McDonald's in the Atacama Region.

It has LED lighting, specialized refrigeration, the use of solar energy, thermal insulation and low energy and water consumption facilities.

In addition, the location will be part of a new Arcos Dorados program, which is gradually incorporating organic waste composters into the restaurants.

With this process, waste emissions are reduced by 30%.

A milestone that was celebrated by company executives and the authorities of the Atacama Region, who see in the arrival of the company a sign of economic growth and modernization of the fast food industry.

“Our company is growing in Chile as proof of the confidence of Arcos Dorados in the country.

We promote youth employability and a sustainable operation, setting a precedent in Chile and Atacama,” highlights Carlos González, general director of Arcos Dorados Chile.

The “M” has been growing since 1990 in Chile and has professionalized the fast food industry through the generation of jobs and a technological production system that continues to modernize.

“We arrived in the area where the driest desert in the world is located to celebrate a long history.

Since the nineties, we have been an important part of the modernization of the national fast food industry, because we are always looking for opportunities to improve.

This restaurant is number 100 and reflects a large part of our evolution,” González highlights.

Arcos Dorados' “Sustainable Restaurants” model is recognized in Chile and was awarded the National Environment Award in 2023 for its contribution to the food industry.