Mother left fuming after claiming her McDonald’s Happy Meal ‘came with ash and a cigarette butt inside’
- Gemma Kirk-Bonner, 35, said she found a cigarette in her son’s Happy Meal
- She was feeding her one-year-old Caleb when she saw the cigarette butt
A mother claims she was left ‘smoking’ after buying her son a McDonald’s Happy Meal only to find ash and a cigarette butt inside.
Gemma Kirk-Bonner said she was ‘disgusted’ by the grim discovery and claims she is still waiting for an apology from the fast food giant.
The teaching assistant claims she bought the Happy Meal last Wednesday when she went to a McDonald’s in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria.
The 35-year-old said she bought two fish fingers of Happy Meals, which cost £3.59 each, for her children – Caleb, one, and Jackson, three – and then took them home to eat.
But Mrs Kirk-Bonner claims she saw a smoked cigarette and ash among the chips as she fed her youngest son.
Gemma Kirk-Bonner said she was ‘disgusted’ by the grim discovery in the Happy Meal
The 35-year-old bought two fish sticks of Happy Meals, which cost £3.59 each, for her children
The teaching assistant claims she bought her son the Happy Meal last Wednesday
She said: ‘I gave my three-year-old his without looking.
“Then I put my one-year-old in his high chair and hand-fed him. I was picking up the fish sticks for him.
‘Then I saw the ashes and the cigarette in the box. It was disgusting. I was definitely smoking.
‘If I had given the box to my three-year-old he would have tried to eat it. He wouldn’t have known it was any different.
“I put on Facebook, ‘Forget the toy – now comes with cigarette butt (and) ash for extra flavor,’ because I was smoking.”
The mother and two said she later complained to the McDonald’s branch on Dalton Road, but said the manager ‘rudely’ hung up the phone on her.
She now plans to boycott her usual Friday night visits to McDonald’s until the matter is properly resolved.
She added: “It put me off. I thought twice about going to McDonald’s.
‘I normally take my sons with me on Fridays, but this time I’m definitely not going to do that.
“I’m in the process of filing a complaint with McDonald’s corporate office.”
A McDonald’s spokesperson said: ‘Food safety is of the utmost importance to us and we place great emphasis on quality control and providing the highest standard to our Barrow-in-Furness restaurant customers.
“We encourage the customer to contact customer service so we can properly investigate and assist in finding a resolution.”