McDonald's Runs Out Of French Fries In Venezuela; What Are They Serving Instead?

Over 100 McDonald’s franchises in Venezuela have run out of French fries and they blame it on a contract dispute from importers in the West coast for stopping the exportation of frozen potatoes to the country. The dispute allegedly caused a shortage of the side dish in Japan as well. However, Operations director of McDonald’s in Latin America, Sonia Ruselere, declined to explain why other surrounding countries were not affected. The food giant said it’s working on solving the issue, but it is likely tied to the difficult economic situation the country’s facing.

Some of the fast food restaurants are now serving fried yucca instead, and apparently this is not faring well with the costumers. María Guerreiro was one of the unhappy campers who had taken her daughter exclusively to enjoy a happy meal and refused to eat yucca. “It’s because of the situation here, it’s a mess,” said Guerreriro about her country’s current status. “In the meantime, we’re still offering the McDonald’s experience for our costumers while offering 100% authentic Venezuelan options,” said the company.

However, data compiled by the U.S. Potato Board showed that the country imported just 14% of the frozen fries in 2014 that it did in the year before. This of course came as a great opportunity for fast food competitor Burger King as they took to Twitter to remind their loyal costumers they still have delicious French fries.