McDonald’s have recently planned to open new restaurants in religious centers and pilgrimage sites in India hoping to expand their market. Although they are offering vegetarian choices for consumers, some Indians think that setting up McDonald’s near religious centers is very disrespectful to their people and religion. As cows are sacred in India and McDonald’s is accountable for slaughtering millions of cows every year, they think having McDonald’s near the sites is a humiliation. The main ethical issue in the article is that McDonald’s is considered unclean even though they are providing a vegetarian menu to accommodate the needs of Indians. People feel that having McDonald’s too close to their temples will befoul them. Since Indians are very religious, there are protests against McDonald’s recently trying to stop it from opening new branches close to their religious sites. Although opening new restaurants in their pilgrimage sites are not illegal, it’s considered unethical because it has offended not only the people but also their religion. In my opinion, McDonald’s should definitely slow down the expansion as it will not only create a bad image to Indians which will lead to protests and activities against McDonald’s, it may also create a bad reputation round the world.
Business Ethics – McDonald’s facing Hindu protests over restaurants near holy sites
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